What Was That Book Called?

"Black tea or coffee?"

Holding two mugs, Utaha Kasumigaoka walked up to Luo Shu and handed one over.

Luo Shu looked at the coffee in the mug, his mouth twitching. As he took it, he remarked:

"If there isn't actually a choice, don't bother offering one."

"Really?" Utaha Kasumigaoka carried her mug to a nearby sofa and sat down, taking a small sip. "But I think the illusion of choice fits our current situation perfectly, doesn't it?"

Hearing that, Luo Shu looked at the coffee in his hand, then couldn't help turning toward Utaha Kasumigaoka.

Utaha Kasumigaoka, who was sipping her coffee with her eyes half-closed, soon noticed his gaze and smiled.

"Keep staring at me like that, senpai, and I'll call the police."

"The person who was just urging me to get away from the police has no right to say that."

As he spoke, Luo Shu raised his coffee and took a sip, then asked:

"Speaking of which, aren't you going to report me to the police?"

"Normally, an incident on that scale would definitely attract the attention of Japan's Metropolitan Police Department. Given all the surveillance cameras along the way, they've probably already tracked our movements."

Just then, however, the system's voice suddenly sounded in both their ears:

[Not at all, dear~~]

[At the request of your familia member Utaha Kasumigaoka, all surveillance footage along the route has been adjusted to appear perfectly normal, dear~]

Luo Shu: "..."

For a moment, Luo Shu had no idea what to say.

Utaha Kasumigaoka narrowed her eyes and looked at him with a bright smile. "Would you like to continue?"

Sighing, Luo Shu rubbed his forehead as though nursing a headache, then asked, "...So you two have teamed up!"

He meant the system and Utaha Kasumigaoka.

At some point, those two seemed to have reached an understanding and were pushing ahead with the so-called "recreating the divine pantheon" mission.

Luo Shu, who had only just escaped death, found this particularly hard to adjust to.

He didn't like being pushed along by others.

With that thought, Luo Shu abandoned his earlier desire to extricate himself and instead asked Utaha Kasumigaoka:

"So, what exactly are you and my divine servant planning to do?"

"It must have told you about its mission and objectives, right? In that case, you should also know that, at most, I'm just an 'ordinary person' with a few supernatural powers. Under those circumstances, how do you intend to proceed? What are you trying to achieve?"

"And by the same token, what sort of 'reward' do you want once you've achieved that goal?"

Utaha Kasumigaoka was rather surprised by how quickly Luo Shu had responded.

He was reluctant just a moment ago, but now he's taking the initiative. A god's adaptability really is frightening...

As she reflected on that, the way Utaha Kasumigaoka looked at Luo Shu changed a little.

Holding her coffee, she spoke between sips:

"According to the information your servant gave me, the energy it needs seems to be something like influence?"

"Aside from certain special people who are born with it, that energy can generally only be collected from people with influence in society. Is that right?"

"...More or less." Luo Shu considered the system's explanation and felt that Utaha Kasumigaoka's summary was fairly close.

The energy the system wanted really was something like that.

"Then that makes things simple."

Utaha Kasumigaoka set down her mug and smiled:

"Wildly popular celebrities, politicians who wield power and claim the moral high ground, civil servants who truly determine the country's direction, presidents of major corporations, even religious leaders-if we turn those people into familia members, collecting energy should be a breeze, shouldn't it?"

"After all, I really can't imagine which of them would refuse a longer life and a younger body."

Luo Shu raised an eyebrow at that, but didn't dispute Utaha Kasumigaoka's idea.

Everything she said reflected reality.

After all, if a medicine that could genuinely cure diseases and extend lifespans appeared in the real world, those "big shots" would usually be the first to enjoy it.

Society had never rejected the concept of hierarchy.

[Ding-dong!]

[Unfortunately, while the Lord God's and the familia lady's idea has considerable merit, the Lord God's familia members must possess a certain required "aptitude," and this "aptitude" is not widespread.]

[Furthermore, at present, energy points can largely only be obtained through the Lord God and his familia members increasing their own "influence."]

[Therefore, this proposal is not feasible.]

Hearing this, Utaha Kasumigaoka frowned and asked, "What exactly is this aptitude?"

The system's answer was vague. It offered only one phrase: [Fate's favor.]

Utaha Kasumigaoka froze for a moment at that, then said self-deprecatingly, "Really? Who would have thought someone like me could receive fate's favor?"

After saying that, Utaha Kasumigaoka composed herself and asked, "Then is there any way to identify people who possess this aptitude?"

[The Lord God's Eye of Truth can effectively identify these people in a crowd.]

Listening to the system's nonsense, Luo Shu could only grumble inwardly: This system is talking about protagonists, isn't it? And what's this about "these people"...? Don't tell me this world has a whole bunch of protagonists I recognize?

While Luo Shu was grumbling to himself, Utaha Kasumigaoka glanced at him and said:

"Then that really limits what we can do..."

Luo Shu turned at her words, gave Utaha Kasumigaoka a look, and said:

"Does it?"

"I think it's fine. After all, it'd be stranger if becoming a god and founding a divine lineage came without restrictions."

Luo Shu paused there, then continued:

"Besides, even if we can't recruit those so-called 'big shots,' it's not as if we have no way to influence them, is it?"

"You mean..." Utaha Kasumigaoka looked at Luo Shu curiously.

The corners of Luo Shu's mouth lifted slightly as he spoke in a teasing tone:

"I once read a book. I've forgotten what it was about, but one sentence stuck with me."

"What sentence?" Utaha Kasumigaoka suddenly felt a little uneasy.

Just then, moonlight fell through the window onto Luo Shu's face, illuminating one half of it:

"The greatest lie in this world is 'religion.'"

"And we just happen to have the power to make that lie come true, don't we?"

Utaha Kasumigaoka fell silent for a moment, then asked:

"That book you read wouldn't happen to have been called 'The Criminal Code,' would it?"