Shorting

Hearing the captain's lip-reading translation, Karen asked in great astonishment, "Is the Church of Pamires entirely made up of traitors?" The Hierophant was the true helm of the Church of Pamires. Of course, within the Messenger Space, the Church of Pamires might also have beings similar to the Temple Elders in the Temple of Order, but in terms of church administration, the Hierophant held absolute supreme juridical authority. Last time, when Rasma and three Temple Elders of Order came to Mink Street to confront Diss, Rasma had also stood at the very front, while the three Temple Elders stood at the very back. The Chief Executive of the Church of Pamires was equivalent to the director of the Hierophant's office. Because she essentially represented the Hierophant's will, her practical influence made her second only to the Hierophant. Her status was even higher than that of the Holy Child. The Holy Child belonged to the next generation of leadership, whereas she held immediate authority right now. Furthermore, before a Holy Child actually became Hierophant, anything could happen. And so, such a revered figure of the Church of Pamires had stepped out of the blue gate and saluted the Knights of the Church of Order. Had she... defected too? "The Holy Child is a traitor, the Chief Executive is a traitor... this Hierophant is truly pitiable..." At this point, Karen paused. What if the Hierophant himself was one as well? Although it seemed absurd, Karen had constantly seen people guess his own identity by immediately ruling out the only correct answer to his face, which made him unsure. Could it really be possible? By then, the Third Knights assembled outside the cavern had begun moving in batches onto the platform over the sea, stepping into the glowing blue gate. As they marched, they resembled a black deluge, exuding an utterly terrifying sense of oppression. "Let's go," Neo called to Karen, turning to head down. Karen followed behind his captain, making his way downward. As they neared the car, the captain asked, "You driving, or me?" "You, Captain." Having seen this dead-end path only once, Karen truly didn't dare take the wheel on a whim. Most importantly, he had seen the captain activate the spell within the VIP car to successfully traverse the barrier. Although Karen knew he learned spells very quickly, if he made a single mistake, he might end up crashing the car and killing both himself and the captain. He still preferred learning spells while eating plain noodles. Neo drove, taking the same route back. "How do you see this whole thing?" Neo asked. "Ruling out the extreme possibility that the upper echelons of the Church of Pamires are all traitors, there is only one explanation left: our church and the Church of Pamires reached a secret cooperation long ago. "The crimes listed in the Order Weekly against the Church of Pamires, as well as the wave of criticism stirred up by our own church, must be a smokescreen. It's all to create the illusion of 'extreme antagonism.' "The Third Knights have already mobilized, and knights orders elsewhere have likely mobilized as well. With such large-scale deployment and such a realistic, costly smokescreen, our church's real target must be, at the very least, a major church." "Be bolder. Guess bigger." "The target is... an Orthodox Church?" "Without a doubt. Aside from an Orthodox Church, no other church deserves the luxury of a smokescreen on this scale." "Still, limited by my experience and knowledge, there are some things I can't quite figure out." "Speak." "First of all, where does that Holy Child stand in all of this?" "His stance has no impact on this matter. Remember the drugs slipped into the drinks and food? I think it's more like a father who hasn't seen his son in too long and wants to spend some quality time with him." "..." Karen. "I'm not joking. I genuinely think that's the possibility." "So the Holy Child is actually the most pitiable one. Like a fish sealed in a glass jar and thrown into the sea, all the while believing it's free and important." "Pitiable?" Neo glanced at Karen. "I said I wouldn't pry into your secrets, but you uncovering them in front of me yourself doesn't count as me breaking my word. From that sentence alone, anyone could tell your background is by no means simple. "What normal person would pity him over this? "His status, his position, his family background—they're all right there, enough to make countless people envious. "Right now, it's nothing more than a father playing a little joke on him, or perhaps a minor trial to help him mature faster. "After tonight, he might go right back from prisoner of war to the revered Holy Child of a church. "You pity him? "Do you have everything he has? "And do you have the freedom he lacks? "Heh. "So, is your grandfather a Bishop of the Vien Region?" Karen really wanted to toss the captain's earlier words right back at him: *Be bolder. Guess bigger.* However, Karen held back, smiled, and said, "I just trust you, Captain." "No need to trust me. I'll fail your trust." "But our squad's creed is: never abandon, never give up, never betray." "While I'm the captain, of course. What if, one day, I'm no longer the captain?" "That sounds a bit frightening, Captain." "Only a bit? Sounds like you've already seen what's truly frightening, haven't you?" "Yes. Seeing the Third Knights march out of the cavern just now was truly shocking." "Alright, alright. Looks like from now on, I need to be nice not just to that Richard, but to you as well. Did you know? I had an ulterior motive for recruiting Richard." "An ulterior motive?" "Yeah. Before he went home, I asked him to pass along a question, though I don't know if I'll get an answer." "Did you already know this was going to happen before recruiting him?" "No, I didn't. I just sensed a slight shift in the wind. You know, a hound's ears always have to be sharp, especially when I'm the pack leader. If my hearing were bad, I couldn't lead the team. "So don't trust me. My motives are never pure." "If someone were useless, you wouldn't recruit them into the squad either, Captain. By that logic, your motives aren't pure toward anyone in the team." "A very diplomatic answer. I like it. Instantly makes me feel clean again." *Buzz!* Just then, the VIP car emerged from the barrier and continued driving toward York City. Without this car, getting into that place would truly have been difficult. "Captain, I have another question. Our church's declaration of war against the Church of Pamires shouldn't just be a smokescreen to catch the target Orthodox Church off guard, right?" "In theory, that is the goal, but from an operational perspective, there's more to it. "First off, the Church of Pamires excels at forging spatial artifacts. Just like that old refrigerator you collected, what's its greatest function? Definitely not storage, but... teleportation. "So, you can think of the Church of Pamires' Messenger Space as... a giant refrigerator." "The Messenger Space acts as a transit station?" "Not just a transit station, but a springboard. The Messenger Space was opened by the god Pamires. Because of its uniqueness, spatial teleportation conducted there is far more effective and much faster. "Teleporting one person can be done quickly, but teleporting an entire knights order or several knights orders would inevitably be very slow. In the Messenger Space, however, that process can be accelerated. "Besides, with the destruction of the Seventh Knights, our church was furious, so mobilizing several more knights orders to showcase our might is a completely normal reaction. "Furthermore, with the Church of Pamires being attacked, powerful spatial formation fluctuations coming from the Messenger Space would also be completely natural. "Do you know? Every time a large-scale teleportation formation is activated, the commotion and impact it produces are no less than an extraordinary god descent ritual summoning an evil god—in fact, far greater. "Because I've never heard of, nor seen recorded anywhere, an evil god being summoned along with an entire army. "Such a massive disturbance is almost impossible to conceal completely. Other churches would inevitably sense it, especially the Orthodox Churches. They don't lack specialized monitoring personnel, they don't lack true powerhouses, and they don't lack divine artifacts that can issue early warnings. "Under normal circumstances, you wouldn't be able to pull off a surprise attack against them at all. But under these conditions, a sneak attack can achieve real results. "So yes, it is a smokescreen, but the effect of that smoke is greater than you can imagine." "That is truly... a massive scheme." "You might have seen some of our church's corrupt side, but never underestimate the wisdom of our higher-ups. To replace the Church of Light in this era as one of the twin poles of churches, their fists certainly had to be big, but their brains had to be even better." "Doesn't that mean this trick can only be used once?" "Yes, only once. A strategic sneak attack using a mid-sized church as a springboard can only ever be pulled off once. Most importantly, you won't find a second church with the traits of the Church of Pamires, nor is there another Messenger Space that could offer such convenience. "I imagine that if the prophecy of the gods' impending awakening hadn't come first, followed by the violent shockwave attack on the Temple of Order, plunging our church into an extremely disadvantageous storm of rumors and threatening the foundation of our hegemony, those people at the top wouldn't have been willing to play this card either." "..." Karen. So all of this was still a chain reaction triggered by Grandfather's blast? No wonder the Church of Order remained so wary even with Grandfather asleep. After all, Grandfather could still sit up from bed and blow it up once more. No, counting the one Grandfather had voluntarily handed over to the Temple of Order, he could blow it up two more times. Neo cracked his neck with a soft pop. "But after this, the hegemony of Order will be consolidated once again, unless..." Neo paused. "...the gods truly awaken." "Captain, do you hope the gods awaken?" "Whether the gods awaken or not isn't something we can predict, nor something we can interfere with. Many people hope the gods awaken because they look forward to being led forward by them. "Yet in this era, the gods do not appear, and our church, in the name of Order, forbids churches from excessively meddling in the secular world. Only because of this does the present world display something never before seen in the records of other eras. "Sometimes I even wonder: would it be better if there were no gods in this world, if no gods had ever appeared at all?" "Captain, are you not even disguising your thoughts in front of me anymore?" "Heh... That's because I trust you, and I know you won't betray my trust." "That's not fair." "It is fair. Come on, I'll buy you a drink." Karen only then noticed that the VIP car had pulled up in front of a hotel. "Put on your mask and get out." Karen summoned his silver mask and got out after Neo. But Neo didn't head toward the hotel entrance; instead, he walked around a corner, where a group of people who looked like gang members were watching with predatory gazes. Neo paid them no mind. After slipping past them, he walked straight into the wall ahead and vanished. *Mm...* Karen also walked forward and stepped into the wall, only to find himself inside an extraordinarily spacious bar. It was bustling and packed with people. "What, never been to a black market?" Neo asked. "First time." "Then you must have someone trustworthy around you." "Yes." "This is the bar, over there is the dance floor, and this entire floor is for entertainment and indulgence. The floor below is the real black market area, like a marketplace, but you have to follow the rules here: no violence, no throwing your weight around. Hmm, you can also conduct commission trades. "In short, the black market has gang-like rules. Its goal is to serve every customer well and provide the best trading environment so it can take a cut from it all. "The floor above this has a church bank where you can exchange point coupons and even carry out some financial operations." "Financial operations?" "Futures, usually for spellcraft materials. Besides that, you can even speculate on coupons up there." "Speculate on coupons?" "Right. Just like currencies in secular nations, you can target them." "Even that's possible..." "Point coupons are far more reliable than riels. How does the saying go? 'Money is only not all-powerful when placed next to point coupons.'" "That's truly... unexpected." "You'll get used to it." Neo led Karen to the counter. "What do you want to drink?" "Order for me, Captain." "Don't be stiff." Neo said to the bartender, "Two glasses of Dierna blood wine. One strong, one mild." Neo took out a hundred-Order-coupon note and passed it over. Karen noticed that the bartender didn't give any change. So, a God's Servant's monthly allowance was only enough for two glasses. No wonder Dinkum and Pike only drank soda. Two glasses of blood wine were served. One was very dark, which Neo picked up, while the other was much lighter, which Karen took. Taking a sip, there was none of the expected metallic stench of blood, nor any harsh alcohol burn. On the contrary, it was refreshing and mellow. After a single mouthful, his head grew distinctly light—just the right touch of pleasant tipsiness, completely unbothersome and rather enjoyable. "Good?" Neo asked. "Yeah, it's good." "Then remember its name. Next time you come to a place like this with your captain, order this for him." "Oh, okay." "Want me to show you around? Down to the black market below?" Karen shook his head. "I don't need to buy anything for now." At home, the cat and dog were responsible for drafting the shopping list, and Alfred was responsible for making the black market runs. Aside from being somewhat tempted by ingredients bought with point coupons, Karen didn't need to worry about traditional materials at all. He only needed to earn the point coupons and leave them in Alfred's safekeeping. "Then let's go sit in the bank upstairs. I usually like ordering a drink here and then going up there to sit. It's quiet upstairs." "Alright, Captain." Karen agreed, though he also suspected the captain had intended to go upstairs all along. "Oh, almost forgot. There are other services here too. For instance, the 'pastry shop.' Priests from various churches often offer services there, both men and women, paid in point coupons. "If you don't like humans, there are also strange species, like monster beasts." "I'm not interested." "Mm, fine. I heard Fanny and Peige complain that you wouldn't even be moved if they lay naked in front of you." "They told you that too?" "Nope, I guessed. Looks like I guessed right. Next time I see them, I'll mock them properly to see if they dare remain so smug about their figures." "..." Karen. Karen followed his captain to the second floor. Guards stood at every key post, and quite a few patrons wore cloaks covering their faces, while Karen and the captain wore masks. The bank upstairs was very spacious with plenty of people, yet it felt notably quiet. Neo picked a chair in the corner and sat down. Karen grabbed a public banking magazine from a rack and took a seat beside him. On the large screen ahead, the latest financial updates flashed continuously, creating an atmosphere very similar to a secular stock exchange. If Uncle Mason knew such a place existed, would he regret not taking over the funeral parlor back then? Karen opened the magazine. In the point coupon section, the Space Gem coupons issued by the Church of Pamires were prominent, labeled "High Recent Volatility." Touching the page caused a hidden display to slide out, just like in the Order Weekly—a fluctuating trendline. For a long time prior, the exchange rate between Space Gem coupons and Order coupons had remained very steady. Recently, the first sharp drop appeared around the time the Order Weekly began publishing criticisms of the Church of Pamires. After a steady, prolonged decline, a slight rebound had occurred a few days ago, right when the Holy Child of the Church of Pamires arrived at the Church of Order for negotiations. Although the rebound was modest—its value still nearly halved compared to the original—it had at least halted the downward spiral. This showed that the church financial circles weren't very optimistic about the development prospects of the Church of Pamires being absorbed into the Church of Order, viewing it as far worse than remaining independent. "Aren't you curious why the various churches permit the existence of these black markets and black market banks?" Neo asked Karen, holding his drink. Karen thought for a moment and replied: "I imagine the Orthodox Churches are certainly happy to see it. The more people use their point coupons and the wider their circulation, the greater their profits. "Aside from the Orthodox Churches, the vast majority of subordinate churches are essentially exploited by this model, yet they dare not crack down on these black market banks. "First, the Orthodox Churches tacitly support their existence from behind the scenes, and their fists are far too heavy for smaller churches to challenge. "Second, withdrawing would bring even greater harm. Unless a church is capable of achieving total self-sufficiency across all areas, staying out would only stifle its own development. "The catch is, if a church ever grew to the point of complete self-sufficiency... its strength would probably already rank it among the Orthodox Churches, and it would come to love this model instead. "Meanwhile, a church like Pamires, which excels at forging spatial artifacts, can reap substantial benefits under this system. As for churches without any specialty, they can only play this game by gathering and selling raw materials. "The existence of these black market banks is essentially a way for the Orthodox Churches to make the lower churches work for them." Neo looked at Karen with a hint of curiosity. "Studied economics?" Karen shook his head. "Studied history." Neo nodded. At that moment, a chorus of exclamations rose from the crowd ahead: "Look, it's dropping! It's dropping!" "Why is it plummeting so hard? Aren't they negotiating? This shouldn't be happening!" Karen looked up at the screen and saw that Space Gem coupons had begun to fall, and the drop was rapid. "The traitors leaked the news," Karen said. "Looks like it will plummet to an absurd degree." Tomorrow was when the Order Senate would officially issue the divine decree to the entire church world, but clearly, the news had been leaked in advance. The market was already reacting with heavy dumping of Space Gem coupons. No one doubted Order's ability to annihilate the Church of Pamires, especially under a formal declaration of war. And once the Church of Pamires was destroyed, Space Gem coupons would instantly become worthless scrap paper. "Yeah," Neo said, also watching the large screen. "Captain, we can buy up Space Gem coupons right now," Karen suggested. "Once the war breaks out and people realize the Church of Pamires isn't the target, Space Gem coupons will definitely rebound." "Go open an anonymous card at that counter, and you can make trades." "Uh... I didn't bring any point coupons with me." Neo took two cards out of his pocket and handed one to Karen. "There's twenty thousand Order coupons in there. Remember to return my principal tomorrow." Karen took the card and asked in puzzlement, "Captain, aren't you buying any yourself?" Neo shook the remaining card in his hand and said, "This card holds all my savings from all these years. I'm waiting for news." As if realizing something, Karen asked, "Captain, are you waiting for news on which Orthodox Church is our church's real target?" Neo took a sip of the Dierna blood wine, licked his lips, and said: "Right. I'm going to short them."