Anderson glanced at Danitz's expression and continued as if he hadn't noticed anything:
"However, their brains seem to have been eaten by living corpses; they're fanatical to the point of foolishness, not really to my taste. I tricked some stuff out of them and then quit."
"Hey, why are you looking so pale, with so much sweat on your face? Did you get sunstroke? Shouldn't adapting to the environment be instinct for a Hunter?"
Danitz raised his right hand and wiped away the sweat. He cursed in his heart and forced a smile.
"I once heard someone say that once you believe in an evil god, it's almost impossible to shake off," he said.
As he spoke, his chin lifted, looking like he was waiting to see how Anderson would die, completely ignoring the fact that Gehrman Sparrow had just offended the Aurora Order and was now being hunted by the believers of the True Creator, nor did he think about the fact that he himself was now a believer of something resembling an evil god—Mr. Fool.
"Very true," Anderson replied with a smile free of any shadow. "But I never truly believed. The chants I recited were all sentences I adapted from the titles of the God of Knowledge and Wisdom. They don't like to use their brains anyway, or rather, they don't have them? As long as you put up a pious front, you can fool them with any excuse."
Before Danitz could respond, he changed the subject:
"Why did you suddenly bring up the Aurora Order?"
Danitz took a fierce bite of the roasted meat, chewed slowly, and deliberately waited twenty or thirty seconds before saying:
"Because I remembered something. Gehrman Sparrow did something that made the Aurora Order list him as a high-priority target for elimination. Oh, and the Church of the Spirit as well. And both you and I are known to be connected to him."
"Telling me to be careful of the Aurora Order and the Church of the Spirit?" Anderson nodded in sudden understanding and gave a light laugh. "You seem to have said something similar recently—the Rose School, the Church of the Lord of Storms, the Loen military... Geez, sometimes I think Gehrman Sparrow is more suited to be a Hunter than I am."
For once, Danitz didn't retort. He nodded heavily in agreement.
Anderson thought for a moment, then suddenly changed the subject without warning:
"What exactly are you trying to do here in West Balam? Help Gehrman Sparrow?"
At this question, Danitz was silent for a second. He put down what he was holding, adjusted his clothes unhurriedly, and said:
"A survey of the religious beliefs of people at all levels of West Balam."
This was the purpose of his trip, confirmed after discussion with Vice Admiral Iceberg, Edwina. In simpler terms: to investigate the development and influence of various secret organizations in West Balam.
Of course, it would also involve preliminary contact with the local ruling forces to see if they had any need to purchase firearms and ammunition.
"A survey of the religious beliefs of people at all levels of West Balam..." Anderson repeated Danitz's words. He reflexively raised his right hand to rub his temple, looking rather troubled.
...
After ending the Tarot Club meeting and reminding the Star Admiral to be careful about the "investigation" by the Aurora Order and the Church of the Spirit, and to seek help from the Moss Ascetic Order if possible, Klein busied himself with completing a three-way transaction involving The World, The Moon, and The Sun, receiving 5000 pounds in cash.
Later, after dinner, he bit on an unlit decorative pipe while reading the newspaper, when he saw his messenger lady step out of the void and hand him a letter.
"Leonard's..." Klein noticed as he took it whether Reinette Tynicole lingered, but found that the messenger lady quickly returned to the Spirit World.
This confirmed that Leonard Mitchell had already paid the postage, so he took his other hand out of his pocket and unfolded the letter paper:
"Ince Zangwill has appeared in East Balam, suspected to have met with Palenc Tacis of the Artificial Death faction of the Church of the Spirit..."
Ince Zangwill... Klein savored the name as he slowly leaned back into the armchair.
In the letter, Leonard hoped that he could also do some investigation on the side to figure out Ince Zangwill's purpose.
"But the problem is that last time we mentioned that '0-08' has a property similar to 'once said, it knows'; knowing about it means being known by it in return. And it excels at arranging coincidences, making people unconsciously follow its baton... Under these circumstances, investigating Ince Zangwill will be hard to keep from '0-08' detecting it. Not only is there little chance of success, but it's easy to expose ourselves..." Klein thought as he let "Winner" Enzo go behind him and massage his shoulders.
He read Leonard Mitchell's letter again from the beginning, hoping to find more clues and useful investigative angles in those few sentences:
"East Balam... Church of the Spirit... Artificial Death faction... Palenc Tacis... What does Ince Zangwill want from them? Is he seeking allies for the royal faction behind the murderer of the Backlund Smog incident?"
"Artificial Death faction... Artificial Death faction..."
As he thought, he suddenly remembered something almost no one knew except himself and Mr. Azik:
The Goddess of the Night had initially taken control of the "uniqueness" of the Death pathway, which is the "Artificial Death". She is currently usurping, digesting, and grasping the corresponding Authority!