It was not a time for prayer, and strong winds were blowing outside, so the Holy Temple was almost empty. Only one cleric was there. He seemed delighted to see Mulan approaching and did his best to appear kindly.
Evan remembered Mulan vividly. For someone like Mulan to come to the Holy Temple of his own accord meant that he yearned for the Holy Light and God's forgiveness. It was a very good sign.
Mulan stopped at the entrance to the Holy Temple and addressed the young cleric.
"Father, may I come in to pray now?"
"Anytime. Please, come in!"
Evan pushed the doors of the Holy Temple open a little farther and gestured inside. Mulan accepted the invitation, entering with curiosity and reverence.
For Mulan, who had hardly ever prayed at the Holy Temple, everything inside still felt rather new. Its layout and furnishings were much like the churches of his previous life, except that instead of a statue of a god at the far end, there were three golden pillars with square cross sections, converging slightly toward the top. They symbolized the Holy Light that God cast down upon the mortal world.
After the long development of human society in his previous life, people had grown accustomed to imagining gods in human form. In the Holy Temple, however, God's appearance was beyond speculation, something no mortal could imagine.
Remarkably, once Mulan entered the Holy Temple, his mental discomfort eased even more noticeably. Evan followed slowly behind him, observing his movements. The man clearly rarely visited the Holy Temple.
"Father, I've been having nightmares lately and haven't been getting enough rest. My doctor suggested I visit the Holy Temple."
Smiling, Evan gestured for Mulan to sit on whichever pew he liked, then sat beside him.
"Tell me about your nightmares, and whether you experienced anything unusual before they began."
"All right. I have plenty of questions I'd like answered, too."
Even this brief encounter made Mulan realize that the cleric had a presence that naturally drew him closer. He immediately recognized that this was no ordinary cleric. That sense of affinity might mean little to an ordinary person, but for a highly trained former elite officer who had survived a brutal war, it was decidedly abnormal.
"When I came home after leaving the service, I traveled aboard the Princess Niseriel. On that rainy night at sea..."
Mulan skipped over his arrival in this new world entirely and began with the Siren incident. His skill at describing events and his attention to detail recreated the situation with considerable accuracy, though naturally only from his perspective as a retired officer.
When Evan heard that they had disembarked, his expression darkened.
"So everyone left the ship..."
A whole chain of connections had already formed in Mulan's mind, but he still feigned ignorance. He wanted to find out whether clergy like this could truly "listen to the hearts of the faithful on God's behalf."
"Father, what's wrong?"
Evan's impression of this retired officer had undergone a complete reversal. Where he had previously believed him to be a vicious thug, both his deductions and his instincts now told him that the man before him was a highly capable retired officer with a strong sense of justice.
"Mr. Jonester, ordinary doctors will struggle to treat your condition. If you're willing to trust me, I can help you."
Mulan instinctively wanted to ask how much it would cost, but changed his wording before the question left his lips.
"What would I need to give in return?"
Evan smiled.
"Nothing but devotion to God."
Seeing Mulan deep in thought, Evan began entertaining other ideas about such an outstanding man.
"Mr. Jonester."
"Father, just call me Mulan."
"Well then, Mulan, judging by what you experienced firsthand, do you really think the Siren incident aboard the ship was merely an ordinary murder?"
Of course not. Despite that thought, Mulan deliberately sounded surprised.
"Wasn't it?"
"No."
Evan shook his head.
"Someone evil was conducting a transformation ritual aboard the ship. After that poor girl died in terrible agony, her Vengeful Spirit still couldn't leave her body. Amid the storm at sea, she gradually transformed into a newborn Siren."
"Sirens really exist?"
This time, there was more genuine surprise in Mulan's response.
"They do. Though there aren't many, they've existed since ancient times. And now, it seems their numbers are growing."
Seeing precisely the expression he had expected on Mulan's face, Evan sighed and continued.
"Not only do Sirens exist, but there are things far more terrifying and evil. Of course, the most frightening things aren't monsters, but people who have sunk into madness and evil. Their twisted souls are beyond even God's power to call back. They can only be purified by the Holy Light..."
So there's no reasoning with them, and you can only destroy them by force?
Mulan frowned, forming his own interpretation of everything Father Evan said. Then he asked a well-timed question to let the cleric continue.
"Then why do I hardly ever hear about things like this? They rarely appear in the papers, either."
Evan smiled. Curiosity about such things was bad for an ordinary person, but for Mulan, it was good.
"Our world actually has several layers, known by various names. We currently inhabit one layer, while in the Otherworld, beyond the reach of ordinary people, foul, shadowy energies swirl. Evil Spirits and demons lurk there, along with countless terrifying monsters. They watch us constantly, spy on us, envy us. Their gazes are greedy, and they're always ready to pounce upon us... But!"
"Under normal circumstances, things from that world poised between the real and the unreal have great difficulty touching reality directly. Its formation depends upon chaotic, polluted minds. It is the product of clashing resentment and bitterness, greed and deceit. And with God's protection as well, they can only reach mortals if mortals themselves draw closer to them. The more you know, the greater the danger."
Mulan froze for a moment. This sounded rather like an "inner world."
Wait, mortals have to draw closer to them, and the more you know, the greater the danger?
Mulan suddenly looked at Father Evan and his kindly smile. Then why the hell are you telling me so much?
Holy shit, you look so friendly, but you're actually this nasty! Or is knowing this much still safe?
A vein throbbed on Mulan's forehead. He was starting to want to punch the cleric. He was not a devout believer, so he had no religious qualms about doing so, but his reason remained intact. Considering his treatment as well, he forced down the impulse.
"Mulan, do you think the approaching storm is really just an ordinary storm? Do you think this brutal war ended so suddenly simply because the Dilga Empire could no longer hold out?"
These questions sent another shock through Mulan's mind, and Evan did not keep him in suspense.
"Our world has always been changing slowly. The Holy Light of the True God, sacrifices to evil gods, the temptations and influence of all manner of demons, and all the ugliness and misery of the mortal world, such as war and conspiracy, have accelerated those changes. Those terrifying legends are drawing ever closer to us. I can feel that, as a result, the power of the Holy Light has also been slowly growing stronger over these past years..."
With a conflicting mixture of sorrow and excitement, Evan continued his account.
"All this must be difficult for you to understand. Your heart must now be filled with questions and fear. But, my child, though it may take a long time, you will gradually come to understand. You will understand our situation, and our responsibility..."
As Mulan listened to Evan's account, his pupils unconsciously dilated slightly.
Believe me, Father Evan, my ability to understand is far greater than you imagine. Listening to everything Evan described and drawing numerous connections, Mulan arrived at a term that might have been out of place, yet was also remarkably fitting-Spiritual Energy Revival?