Chapter 59

Chapter 59, The Order (4)

Today was our fifth day in the Inner World.

Because of the shocking things that happened on the first day, we had been tense, but nothing particularly unusual happened from the second day through the fifth.

Our daily routine was simple.

Most days were divided into daytime and nighttime activities.

During the day, we usually wandered around gathering information or talked with the followers while gradually adapting to the Inner World.

When night came, I browsed the Gallery and gathered knowledge about divine power and angels.

Since we had to be careful of Agape, I didn't speak privately with the angel again after that.

We spent each day like that, and time passed quickly.

If I had to describe it honestly, the days were peaceful and uneventful.

So peaceful that it was easy to forget this was the base of a faction hostile to us.

On the first day, I had expected something to happen soon.

But nothing did.

Delta and the followers under him simply treated us with extreme hospitality.

They definitely had some kind of intention behind it.

But that intention wasn't clear.

I couldn't even tell whether it would help or harm us.

There was a high chance that their intention would ultimately be harmful to us, but it was difficult to reach a definite conclusion.

At times like this, asking the Gallery was probably better.

Among the countless Gallery users, at least one person might be able to figure out the Order's intention.

With that in mind, I made a post.

And I received an answer.

[I need the Gallery's brainpower]

[Author: Anonymous]

[(Explanation of the current situation)]

[That's roughly the situation. What do you think the Order is trying to do?]

I uploaded the post expecting the usual flood of replies.

I drank a cup of coffee and waited for enough comments to gather.

Around three minutes later, I opened the post.

The number of comments was far beyond what I had expected.

[Comments: 681]

Considering only three minutes had passed, that was more than four comments every second.

It was an absurd number.

The reaction was almost hotter than when pictures of Confirmation Bias and Lucy had been uploaded at the same time.

Curious, I opened the comments.

Countless replies poured across the blue window.

└ That Order has almost 1,000 people who awakened divine power?

└ What kind of insane faction is that?

└ Didn't you say before that the chance of awakening divine power is 1 in 10 million? How is that even possible?

└ They didn't awaken naturally. The angel sacrificed her own divine power and gave it to them one by one. Then it's possible.

└ Holy shit, angels are broken as hell. Nerf them.

└ But not every angel can do that, lol.

└ Then who can?

└ Minimum requirement is reaching Cherub after training for at least 500 years.

└ And the efficiency is so terrible that angels usually only do it for people they're genuinely close to or deeply love.

└ If one person gains 10 units of divine power when awakening, the angel has to spend something like 10,000 units of their own divine power to give them that 10.

└ Damn, so the angel the Gallery Master met did that for 1,000 people? That's insane.

└ A true mommy in this era...

└ But judging from everything the Gallery Master said, doesn't something feel really off? Am I the only one getting a bad feeling?

└ Did you just doubt our angel girl who helped the Gallery Master?

└ I'm saying the Order feels suspicious, idiot, not the angel.

└ Looking at the whole situation, it really does seem suspicious. Feels like they're planning something weird.

└ For real. Even the name "Order" sounds suspicious.

└ What's wrong with an Order?

└ Otherworld Order trope, they're secretly the mastermind.

└ Otherworld Order trope, the high-ranking believers are always corrupted, and the Pope being allied with a demon is basically mandatory.

└ I'm a demon, and this is true.

└ I'm a Pope who made a contract with a demon, and this is also true.

└ Jokes aside, most Orders I've encountered after regression, possession, or reincarnation really were rotten... Even when they weren't, they were always hiding some kind of ulterior motive.

└ Fact, all of them.

└ This is actually true.

└ Hard to tell from text alone... Still, judging from the circumstances, the Order's objective definitely seems related to the Seraph traveling with the Gallery Master.

└ What if they're trying to infect her with Agape like that Throne?

└ That's possible. Maybe they want to force her to love the Order and make her sacrifice herself for them.

└ If that's true, aren't these guys complete bastards?

└ I'm not saying this because I'm the Heavenly Demon, but if that's true, this Order is worse than the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult.

└ I'm not saying this because I'm the Young Cult Leader of the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult, but I'd rather join the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult than that Order.

└ Stop advertising the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult...!

└ But honestly, the Heavenly Demon Divine Cult might actually be better...?

└ So what does everyone think the Order is trying to do? I'm too stupid to understand...

└ I think they're trying to infect the Gallery Master's group with Agape.

└ How?

└ If receiving kindness is how Agape spreads, then they probably wanted the Gallery Master or the Seraph with him to interact with the Throne who's already infected with Agape.

└ Because if they keep interacting, sooner or later they'll receive some kind of kindness from her?

└ Yeah. It's also suspicious that only two people guard the cathedral even though it's supposedly such a secret place that the Cardinal personally warned them not to go there at night.

└ Looking at it that way, it definitely feels creepy.

└ Why is the Gallery so smart today? Isn't this guy usually the one spamming furry worship posts?

└ Guess analyzing the clues the Gallery Master brought us is more fun than keeping up the gimmick, lol.

I read through a large number of comments one by one.

Eventually, I found the answer.

Delta's intention.

Just as one Gallery user had suggested, it seemed his goal was for either me or Lee Yeonhee to become infected with Agape on our own.

Telling us not to visit the cathedral at night in order to provoke our curiosity.

Deliberately leaving no guards at night so it would be easy to sneak inside.

Delta had probably hoped that one of us would secretly communicate with Eriel at night and naturally become infected with Agape.

If that happened, we might become like Eriel.

We might come to love the Order through an implanted emotion and willingly sacrifice ourselves for them.

Of course, it was still only a theory.

But my heart, my head, and more than anything, my instincts told me that my theory was correct.

“Yuhyeon. What are you going to do?”

We had roughly figured out the Order's intentions.

Now we had to decide what to do next.

All three of my companions looked at me.

They were leaving the decision to me.

I thought for a moment, then turned my head when I sensed someone beyond the door.

A moment later, there was a knock.

Knock, knock.

I opened the door.

Delta was standing there.

Every morning, he came here to ask how we were doing.

Anyone could tell that there was also an element of surveillance behind those visits.

“Good morning. It seems you ate breakfast separately here again today. If you wish, you are always welcome to come to the dining hall and eat together with us.”

“I appreciate the offer, but we'll just accept the thought. My companions are a little shy around strangers.”

“Haha. Then it can't be helped.”

We exchanged a few more casual greetings.

Once Delta had finished what he came for, he turned around and prepared to head toward the cathedral.

Before he could fully turn away, I stopped him.

“Cardinal. Do you know how to leave this space?”

“How to leave? Why do you ask?”

“No particular reason. I was simply curious. I'm starting to miss home, so I thought it would be better to at least know how to get out.”

I carefully hid my intentions and emotions.

Delta didn't seem to notice anything unusual in my question.

In reality, I was testing him.

The answer Delta gave now would determine how our group acted from this point onward.

Delta's eyes widened slightly at my response.

Then he opened his mouth.

“Hmm... I see. Before I answer, I apologize for asking this so suddenly, but could you lend me the book you're carrying?”

“What? My book?”

“Yes. The book you always carry, the one with a black cover and golden thread around it.”

I roughly understood what he was trying to do.

I thought for a moment and searched for an appropriate response.

“...Why the book? Are you saying you'll only answer me if I lend it to you?”

My words clearly contained an intention to refuse.

Delta let out a small sound of surprise.

Then he quickly arranged a smile on his face.

“Haha. No. I was simply asking. You don't need to give me the book. As for how to leave this place... you can leave with the help of the followers.”

“Ah... I see. Then how do you enter?”

“The only way is to meet with members of our Order and enter together with us.”

“...I see. Thank you for telling me.”

Delta told me that if I had any other questions, I could ask him or any of the other followers at any time.

Then he left with a pleasant smile.

Once he was completely out of sight, I quietly spoke to the others.

“Delta hid the true methods of entering and leaving the Inner World. And the reason he deliberately asked for Lucy was probably to check whether Agape had already affected me.”

“Yes. It seems he made an unreasonable request so he could observe Yuhyeon's reaction.”

While Lee Yeonhee and I exchanged our thoughts, Hwa-ryeon spoke.

“Then I guess we've figured out what the Order is trying to do. That means we can stop gathering information and finally start acting for real, right?”

The fighting spirit boiling in her eyes clearly showed just how bored she had been over the past several days.

I nodded.

We had spent five days quietly gathering information.

We already had more than enough information to fight the Order.

There was no reason to delay any longer.

We finished preparing our equipment and spent the remaining time making a plan.

Then night arrived.

“...Angel. Are you there?”

In the white world that remained unchanged even after night fell, I knocked on the cathedral doors for the second and final time.