Helping You Become a God Again!

The notebook snapped shut and flew back into the wooden case. The cap returned to the fountain pen, which clipped onto the cover. "Phew..." Alfred let out a long breath, crossed his arms over his chest, and bowed in reverence toward the notebook. Today, he felt thoroughly refreshed. It was a soothing sensation radiating from the depths of his soul—first enduring a wave of shock, then undergoing a round of baptism, and finally attaining sublimation. At the same time, he also knew that things had grown grave. The Young Master's epiphany had arrived very suddenly, and its depth and scope vastly exceeded expectations. Therefore, he had to hurry to the Young Master's side immediately. As he walked out of the castle, Alfred saw a group of people leading a dog... no, a dog leading a group of people walking toward him. Except for Little Kanna with her thick head of white hair, every other person—and the dog—was bald, their reflected gleam outshining the setting sun. Daliwenluo looked at Alfred with a provocative gaze, but Alfred only had eyes for the dog. Alfred and Kevin nodded to each other, and Alfred drove off. He had sensed the peculiar atmosphere among the bald faction, but found nothing strange about it. According to the Young Master's schedule, once Bern died, it would be Kevin's turn to have his matters settled. The second-hand black Ponce sedan pulled up in front of the administrative building. Alfred walked in and took the elevator. It stopped at the second floor from the top, where two priests appeared at the entrance: "Our apologies, but the Head Bishop is not receiving guests right now." Alfred didn't get angry. He merely smiled faintly, stepped out of the elevator, and waited patiently, as this meant the Young Master was being "protected." After a moment, word seemed to come down from above, and the priests who had stopped him signaled that he could go up. Reaching the top floor, he knocked on the office door. "Enter." It was Bern's voice. Pushing the door open, Alfred saw his Young Master sitting on the sofa, while Bern sat opposite him. His sitting posture looked natural, yet was somewhat overly studied in its naturalness, resembling an art sketch model. Still, to achieve this degree of composure after learning the Young Master's true identity was already quite remarkable. Truly worthy of being the first pure Order priest awakened by the Young Master. Karen pointed at Alfred and said to Bern, "Alfred will brief you on the rest. He is my butler." Bern stood up and bowed to Alfred, and Alfred returned the courtesy in equal measure. "All right, you two can talk. I'll head back first." "Young Master..." "I want to be alone for a while." "Very well, Young Master. Here are the car keys." "Mm." His Young Master was someone who cherished old memories and attachments, both toward cars and people, which was why Alfred insisted on continuing to drive that second-hand car. "Young Master, should I arrange for guards to protect you, or let..." "No need. Just let me indulge myself this once, all right?" "Understood, Young Master. There are songs recorded on the car radio." "Wonderful." Alfred knew Daliwenluo's bald head had always been calculating something, but he never cared, nor did he fear competing with him. He and Daliwenluo simply weren't running in the same lane. Soon, only Alfred and Bern remained in the office. After exchanging a glance, in tacit understanding, one moved behind the desk while the other stood before it. Alfred spoke first. "Congratulations." "Yes, thank you." "I hope you have made preparations in advance." "Indeed, of course." Bern pulled open a drawer. Inside was a hidden compartment containing a wealth of precious files. He continuously drew them out. Soon, the desk could hold no more, so he began placing them across the floor tiles. This was the life's "fortune" of an old shadow operative—special personnel connections, blackmail material, secret contacts, and everything imaginable, along with far more that was unimaginable. Many of these items did not actually belong to Bern; he had merely exercised authority over them on behalf of the church. Under church regulations, turning them over to anyone else was impossible, and Bern's own strict code of conduct would never have permitted it. Karen, however, was an exception, and Bern felt not the slightest burden of conscience. Within a church, if you handed things over to your primary God, what violation could you possibly have to worry about? When joining the church, every one of them had sworn an oath: to dedicate everything to our Lord. "That's about it. These are all of them." Alfred swept his eyes over the desk and floor, nodded, and said, "You didn't disappoint me. Even after coming ashore, you didn't scrub yourself completely clean." "I washed away some of it, but in my line of work, only death makes one truly clean." Alfred asked, "How long will it take to convert them?" "It will require sufficient resources to reboot." "Resources are not an issue." "Then it will be fast." "What about further expansion?" "As long as there are enough resources." "Very well." "Handed over to whom?" "It was your specialty to begin with. Naturally, you will continue doing it." Bern nodded, sighing with emotion. "Who would have thought that after dying once, not only would I fail to escape my original duties, but I would be assigned even more work." "I shall take that as a blissful compliment." "Yes, precisely. I am very blessed. This is my reward." "Normally, I would take you to Allen Manor to go through the formalities, but let's save time. Today, I'll divide and hand over specific duties to you so you can integrate and begin working faster." "Can efficiency really be this high?" "No problem at all. Over the vast majority of the Young Master's affairs, I have final decision-making authority." "I like this feeling and atmosphere." "You can enjoy that same authority, because I plan to hand over several projects and plans originally under my responsibility to you." "And what about you? What will you do?" Alfred looked down at the copy of Light of Order sitting on the desk. He said, "I am going to write a book." ... Bern had already been dead for two days. Yet Bern remained full of energy. Karen, by contrast, seemed somewhat languid. Even after resting for two days, he still had not recovered. It wasn't from overexertion or fatigue, however, but because his soul power had surged drastically, requiring considerable mental effort to regulate. It felt like having so much household wealth that managing the finances exhausted the mind. Normally at times like this, Karen would find someone to spar with, to gain a clear understanding of his current strength and better master his newly acquired power. Unfortunately, the most suitable candidate seemed to have vanished into thin air recently. According to what Karen knew of him, he was probably busy stirring up trouble somewhere. Still, Karen had declined Alfred's request to mobilize a broader intelligence network to investigate him. After all, taking a vacation was rare for him. Let him have his fun. Once he felt he could keep up with the pace, he would return and initiate a spar, and Karen could then give him an even bigger surprise. The carriage rolled along. Little Kanna sat inside, her backpack resting on her lap and her homework notebook laid out over it as she did her assignments. Ever since Purr returned, her opportunities to relax had become few and far between. After working for a while, Little Kanna looked up at Karen, speaking with an aggrieved tone: "You're supposed to say that writing in a swaying place is inconvenient." Karen replied, "This is a church carriage. Can you feel any vibration?" "Doing homework under dim light is bad for the eyes." Karen glanced up at the crystal chandelier hanging from the carriage ceiling. "The lighting in here is much brighter than outside." "Mm, you should suggest that I take a rest." "Be good. Even though your Big Sister Purr is at the manor with Kevin right now, we'll be arriving soon. She'll inspect your homework, so think carefully about the consequences of not finishing it." "Then... let me do divination." "No." Sniffling, Little Kanna could only lower her head and continue working on her Advanced Formations homework atop the makeshift desk provided by a divine artifact. The carriage stopped before the Guman family residence, and Karen got out. Little Kanna began packing up her things to follow him down, but Karen stopped her. "Keep writing. Just remember to greet people when they come." "Okay." Karen stepped into the courtyard. Today wasn't a rest day, so the priests of the Guman family were all at work. Karen had only come to fetch Grandmother, Madame Tangli, to Allen Manor; after all, he had promised her last time. At the moment, only two people were in the large house: his grandmother, Madame Tangli, and Philomena. Philomena was receiving private instruction, holding the Blade of the Nightmare as she cultivated. She was clearly in great pain, because she wore no priestly robe, but rather a suit of armor. Every inch inside and outside the armor had been inscribed with arrays by Grandfather Delon at Grandmother's insistence. This was the tailored training regimen she had designed for her female student. Those who knew understood Grandmother's painstaking care; those who didn't might think Madame Tangli was deliberately torturing and tormenting the Felscher girl to vent her spite. Yet precisely because of Grandmother's meticulous guidance and constant pampering... Among those around Karen, Philomena's rate of progress was the most astonishing. The Felscher family was an episcopal lineage, and within her was concentrated the distilled talent of the entire clan. She herself had quite an appetite—including for hardship. Moreover, there was another undeniable factor: everyone else around Karen had to shoulder work duties, which drained much of the time and energy they could otherwise devote to cultivation. Only Philomena was an exception. Madame Tangli seemed to sense something. Turning her head toward Karen as he walked into the rear courtyard, she asked in surprise: "Karen, do you have to deliberately use concealment arts when visiting family?" "Huh? No, I didn't, Grandmother." Previously, every time Karen reached the gate, Madame Tangli was either "just returning from buying groceries" or opening the door to water the courtyard flowers. This time, however, Karen had walked all the way into the backyard without her noticing in the least. Madame Tangli walked up to Karen, reaching out to grip his wrist. Karen let her hold it. After checking, Madame Tangli's eyes widened, and she cried out in shock, "How is this possible?" Even though, in her memory, every time she saw this grandson of hers, his rank and realm had jumped by leaps and bounds, this time was truly beyond belief. It was so exaggerated that Madame Tangli felt that unless she undid the seals slowing her aging and restored herself to her peak state, even she would be powerless against the grandson before her. Madame Tangli asked in bewilderment, "What on earth have you been eating?" He had eaten quite a lot; recently, he had even "eaten" hunger addiction. Moreover, this was only the initial stage of Karen's God's Shepherd phase. Once the Hunger Addiction Sculpture completely took on his appearance, his strength would undergo a qualitative leap. "Meals made by our housemaid, and the food you had sent over, Grandmother." Madame Tangli couldn't help touching Karen's chest, marveling, "Truly worthy of the Inmeles bloodline." Karen added, "And the bloodlines of the Guman and Alte families as well." Madame Tangli brushed it aside. "The old man isn't home anyway." "Still, we can't make Grandfather sad." "What use is his sadness? Won't his family's bloodline have to rely on the Felschers to elevate it later on?" Beside them, Philomena continued practicing her blade, acting as if she heard nothing. Karen said, "You shouldn't put it that way." "It's fine. The old man is proud of it anyway; it's practically a Guman family tradition." "All right." Karen shrugged. "Grandmother, I'm here to take you back to the manor to relax." "I assume that's just an afterthought. You must have more important matters to attend to." "Taking you to relax is the main purpose; everything else is incidental." "Look at that, look at that. Even though I treat all my grandchildren equally, you're still the most considerate." Philomena, who was practicing her blade, opened her mouth to speak, but Madame Tangli turned her head and snapped, "Shut up, keep practicing your blade." Karen looked at Philomena. "You don't need to come this time. Grandmother will protect me." "Understood." Madame Tangli reminded him, "Remember to bring Richard back early tonight. Don't let him keep running around wild." Saying this, Madame Tangli looked at Karen and asked, "He claimed you told him to go to that sort of place to build an intelligence network?" "Faith in the Church of Mills seems to soothe the bloodline fluctuations within him." "Why didn't his father need that?" "The bug inside him probably exerted other influences." "Be that as it may, I don't want him bringing home a priestess from the Church of Mills." At this, Grandmother deliberately raised her voice. "If he dares bring one through the door, I'll slash that woman to death with one blade, and then hack him to death too." Philomena remarked, "That would violate the Code of Order." Madame Tangli retorted, "I'd bet anything my great-grandson's grades will be terrible." Karen escorted Madame Tangli into the carriage. Little Kanna immediately broke into a smile. "Hello, Grandmother!" Calling out warmly, she took the initiative to set aside her homework and hug Madame Tangli. Madame Tangli embraced Little Kanna dotingly, kissing her soft cheeks again and again. Purr had raised and taught her well. The once aloof and withdrawn little bone dragon had now become utterly clever and sharp-witted. The carriage moved forward. Little Kanna slipped out of the embrace and said, "Grandmother, I need to do my homework." "The carriage sways, and the lighting is poor. It'll hurt your eyes." "But... but if I don't finish my homework, I'll be scolded." "It's fine. Just tell her I said so. That cat won't dare scold you. Let her come at me." "Okay, Grandmother, hehe." Madame Tangli looked at Karen and asked, "I hear that cat can turn into a human now?" "Mm." "Do you still sleep in the same bed?" "I've noticed your opinion of Philomena has been growing more favorable. It seems I won't be able to tease Grandfather anymore about always thinking of such things." "Sigh, even if it were a pig, after feeding it for so long, feelings would develop. Feeding it the cabbage from our own garden as well makes no difference." "Let them decide for themselves. When it comes to matters of the heart, it's best we don't interfere." Madame Tangli glared at Karen, then lowered her head to keep kneading Little Kanna's cheeks. "Hey, this new backpack looks quite nice. Is it a sacred artifact?" Little Kanna replied, "It's a divine artifact!" "Oho." Madame Tangli nodded. "As expected of the Church of Order. Vast assets, grand estate." Once the carriage flew beyond the city perimeter, it sped directly toward Allen Manor. It was tough work for Andrew and the outer security guards, who struggled to keep pace. However, with Karen's personal strength advancing further, these guards increasingly resembled an honor guard. Yet they truly served a necessary purpose, keeping annoying flies from harassing Karen; after all, there were always insignificant small fry with wild delusions of attempting a high-difficulty challenge. Old Anderson stood behind the manor with Eunice, waiting. As the carriage landed, Old Anderson bowed low, nearly dropping to his knees. Eunice lightly bit her lower lip, a smile gracing her face. When the door opened and Karen stepped out, she walked over naturally to support Madame Tangli down from the carriage. Although Madame Tangli wouldn't have needed support even if she jumped from a building, the look on her face showed she was very receptive to such courteous treatment. Little Kanna hopped down from the carriage with her backpack and looked up toward the third floor. On the windowsill lounged a black cat, alongside a bald dog's head peeking out. The main reason Purr had returned to the manor early was Kevin. Kevin, who had been brimming with ambition that day and eager to pull himself together and reclaim his standing, was frightened into violent trembling and nearly lost control of his bladder after seeing Karen return from Bern's place. At the very beginning, Karen had only emitted an aura resembling the God of Order during specific moments, terrifying Kevin out of his wits each time. Later on, Karen grew more and more like the God of Order, and Kevin had repeatedly forced himself to adapt. This time, however, was different. When it had wagged its tail and come to Karen for head pats, Karen sitting behind the desk corresponded instantly in that split second with the figure seated upon the Throne of Order. Resembling... and being were fundamentally different things. The household dog had truly been frightened into fleeing to the cat's maternal home. Yet what must come would come; Karen's return this time was precisely to unseal and restore it. Eunice said to Madame Tangli, "Let me show you around over there. Afternoon tea is already prepared." "It wasn't easy for you two to get together; I won't get in your way." "He has business to attend to." "Very well, then." Madame Tangli glanced at Karen. "You have a fine fiancée." Karen smiled. "Yes, it is fortune smiling upon me." Madame Tangli, supported by Eunice, walked toward the lake. Once they had walked a little farther, she sighed softly. "It must be hard on you." "Why would you say that? I am very happy. Did the clothes I had someone deliver fit you well?" "They fit nicely. I like them very much." Pausing, Madame Tangli added, "The old man likes them even more." "That's wonderful. Once the new styles come out, I'll send you another batch." "Heh, you are gentle and understanding, just like his grandmother." "I met Master Dis, but I have no impression of Grandmother." "She passed away quite early." Madame Tangli sighed. "Due to certain special circumstances, but those matters were all dealt with." "Karen has always been very curious about his grandmother as well." "Curious about what? Doesn't he have her right in front of him?" "You mean..." "When his grandfather picked out a wife for him, by whose standard do you think he chose?" Although Eunice possessed pure Allen bloodline lineage that was advancing rapidly after being awakened by Count Rekal, Dis certainly wouldn't have cared about that; he probably didn't think much of Progenitor Allen either. "I used to think Grandmother must have been a formidable woman." "A bustling, lively dynamic is one kind of marriage, and a calm, quiet peace is another. In this world, no two people are identical, so where could there be a universal template for marriage? As long as two people can feel comfortable and happy together, that is enough." "Your teachings are wise." "Heh, actually, you understand better than I do." Just then, someone caught up from behind, running briskly with a backpack on her shoulders. "Oh, we forgot our Little Kanna." Madame Tangli reached out to pat Little Kanna's head. With a mixture of relief and lingering dread, Little Kanna said, "Grandmother, you can't leave me behind right now. Homework is going to be checked!" ... Karen entered the Patriarch's office. Not long after taking a seat, the telephone rang. Old Anderson's voice came through: "Young Master, Mr. Alfred and the Lord Head Bishop have arrived." "Have them go to the performance hall first to pick out a coffin." "Understood, Young Master." Hanging up the telephone, Karen walked to the window, repeatedly tapping a cigarette upside-down against the back of his hand. The day after tomorrow, he would have to set out for the Dinge Region. The annual Sacrificial Day of the Church of Order was drawing near. In previous years, this holiday was celebrated quite plainly—nothing more than prayers, blessings, supplicating the protection of the God of Order, and releasing a hundred or so Sandies to fly through the sky. Sometimes, even the High Priest didn't attend in person, appointing someone to represent him instead; there were often fewer dignitaries present than Sandies. This time, however, it was extremely solemn, rivaling the previous mourning ceremony at the First Knight Order. This signaled that the lot-drawing ceremony was about to commence. Last night, Miss Daina had sent him a communication request. Across the array projection, she looked deeply anxious and nervous, asking him: "Commander, please teach me: how on earth should I choose?" Ridiculously enough, because the High Priest pursued absolute randomness without imposing rigid criteria—let alone behind-the-scenes manipulation—the burden of this lot-drawing had somehow made its way back around to Karen. "So, which one should I pick?" This was an orthodox church, yet it felt as if one were visiting a rustic suburban eatery to pick out a live pheasant on the spot. Just then, Karen saw Old Saman and Madame Gandiluo return. They brought two sealed items. One was Ranidal's consciousness; the other was a skull sent over by Wukongjia's men. Indeed, Karen intended to do it today: not only unsealing Mr. Hoffen's seal, but returning both of these items to Kevin. As things stood, the immediate combat asset easiest to elevate swiftly on his side was Kevin. True, Kevin was weak—thoroughly, utterly weak—yet at the same time, it was whole. It was not like Rielsa, who had only a rotting divine corpse left, nor was it merely a single divine bone or mental imprint, much less one of those deities who incessantly generated oracles and anomalies yet fundamentally had not truly returned. Though it had lost its physical body, lost its mind, lost its head, lost everything, from the perspective of a "god," it remained the most "complete" deity in this world. Even if these items were far from enough to restore it to its peak, enabling it to wield even a fraction of truly divine power would be terrifyingly potent in this era. After all, this was an era... where no gods walked the earth. When the God of Order cast down hunger addiction, it was cast down alongside it. It was simply down on its luck: the moment it arrived, its carefully modified vessel was seized by Karen, and it subsequently ran into his grandfather Dis and Mr. Hoffen—two of the world's most ruthless figures. Otherwise, projecting under the best-case scenario: That youth from the previous era who loved walking in the footprints of Goddess Mills upon the beach, who stepped forth from a barren island and ascended to godhood, had once held the chance to become the supreme existence of this era. Creak... The door pushed open, and Kevin tiptoed in. Confronting Karen now, the dog was in a state of sheer panic and numbness. Snap. Karen lit the cigarette, took a drag, and blew a smoke ring. Turning to Kevin, he asked, "Kevin, will you betray me?" Kevin nodded out of habit. Then, belatedly realizing what he had just nodded to, he immediately clutched his dog head with both paws, opened his mouth wide, and shook his upper body frantically, rocking himself about. Karen walked over to the desk, stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray, and said: "Let's begin. I'll help you become a god again."