Chapter 7: Gods and the Church

"Could it really be that my luck is this terrible?"

Xia De pondered the chance encounter with Doctor Schneider just moments ago, but the rumbling of his stomach pulled him back to reality; for now, the commission was what mattered most.

Less than twelve hours since transmigrating, Xia De had already learned to endure hunger. Had he arrived in a forest, he might have had a chance to hunt; had it been a chaotic era, he might have found a way to procure food.

Yet here he was in an orderly great city, where filling one's belly required abiding by order. Standing at the newspaper office entrance, Xia De watched the "upper-class individuals" entering and exiting the club not far away, hoping the sensation of hunger would pass. Fortunately, he only needed to stand waiting in the fog; if pursuit were required, he would truly be helpless.

"I've never heard of a transmigrator going hungry."

He wanted to blame his own incompetence, but the current situation left him no choice; he could only hope that lady would appear soon, allowing him to submit his report to the employer.

While standing there lost in thought, someone casually handed him a flyer, which he accepted without thinking. Looking up, he saw a round-faced missionary beaming with a smile, dressed in a white priestly robe, bearing the church's holy emblem on the left breast and a black pendant hanging from his neck, distributing papers to the crowd nearby.

Glancing down, he saw that the paper thrust into his hand was promotional material for the Church of War and Peace. Having rummaged through items in the house earlier, Xia De understood this world's religious landscape and knew this was one of the orthodox divine churches.

In the bygone eras of this world, tales of numerous gods existed, but in the current age, only five deities were formally recognized by the authorities and the populace; thus, the mainstream faith of the world rested upon these five orthodox gods—

The Peaceful Father, also known as the God of War and Peace, whose holy emblem is a white dove with light gray wingtips;

Mr. Dawn, also known as the God of Light and Shadow, whose holy emblem is a brass-colored ring with an upper gap;

The Old Man with the Lantern, also known as the God of Sun and Earth, whose holy emblem is a golden sun pattern;

Lady Creation, also known as the God of Creation and Destruction, whose holy emblem is a silver wrench;

The Lord of All Things, also known as the God of Nature and Evil Thoughts, whose holy emblem consists of two overlapping leaves, one withered yellow and one green. The old man who had transported the corpse not long ago was a member of the Nature Church.

"Hmm? Why are the divine domains proclaimed by the orthodox gods all relative concepts?"

Thinking thus, Xia De suddenly formed more ideas about this world. Yet that indescribable feeling could not be better expressed to himself; vaguely, it seemed he had brushed against some power, and a whispering sound arose in his ears:

[You have sensed 'Miracle'.]

This time it was "Miracle," one of the four elements; so far, apart from [Blasphemy], Xia De had encountered all the others. According to the information provided by the voice in his mind, only by touching all four complete elements would one qualify to brush against the mysterious and push open the door to the extraordinary.

"It seems simpler than I imagined; in just half a day, I've already encountered three-quarters of them."

Thus, the woman's laughter rang out in his head once more, and it was truly delightful.

The five orthodox divine churches were not hostile toward one another; their mutual relations were at least far better than those between human kingdoms.

The strength of the churches varied by region, but in the northern pearl of Tobesk City, cathedrals of all five churches existed, engaging in relatively "friendly" competition with one another.

Pondering these matters while looking at the printed material in his hand, Xia De sighed that he wouldn't need to "invent" the printing press himself. Although the print quality wasn't very high, at least...

His eyes suddenly widened as he spotted crucial information: most of the flyer introduced the doctrines of the orthodox god [Peaceful Father] and welcomed both believers and heretics to attend the weekly scheduled scripture readings and sermons at the church.

More importantly, the bottom of the paper stated that those holding this flyer could queue at the church entrance between 5:30 PM on the weekend to receive free relief food. Furthermore, a line of small text added that no matter how long the queue became, anyone appearing before six o'clock would definitely receive a number ticket and would definitely obtain food.

Even if claiming such relief food was shameful, it at least assured Xia De that he would not starve to death today. Rubbing his nose, he noted down the address of the Church of War and Peace, then folded the ink-scented flyer with considerable solemnity and tucked it into Mr. Hamilton's notebook.

Silently in his heart, he thanked that deity; although the sensation of hunger had not yet subsided, his mood had improved significantly.

"My luck isn't actually that bad."

Thinking thus, Xia De knew that once the target of the investigation, Madame Lasoya, entered the club, she would not emerge for at least an hour or two, so he considered whether he might strike up a conversation with that missionary.

Faith in the gods was universal in this world, with atheists being a minority among minorities. Of course, as long as one did not publicly shout disbelief in the gods, there would be no trouble, but Xia De intended to learn about these so-called orthodox gods. In a world where faith existed, remaining ignorant of such matters was even more dangerous.

He was still contemplating how to initiate conversation when the missionary had already walked far away. Feeling quite regretful, he did not give chase but continued standing there to wait; after all, once he had firmly established his footing, there would be ample time to understand all of this.

There were actually quite a few people standing at the newspaper office entrance like him; most were journalists awaiting new news, while a few were idlers working for the newspaper. It was Saturday, and although the weather was foggy, Valente Pedestrian Street, as a main thoroughfare, was bustling, so so many people standing here did not seem out of place.

Although called a "Pedestrian Street," carriages were not prohibited from passing through. While observing the club, Xia De also scrutinized the passersby and carriages, believing this would help him integrate better into this place.

A burnt smell permeated the air; this was, of course, smog. Yet the odor was not very strong; it was merely the mist lingering in the air that grew thicker as the sun shifted from overhead toward the west.

Worried about his physical condition amidst his rambling thoughts, Xia De saw another carriage stop at the club entrance. Immediately raising his gaze to look, he discovered it was Mr. Lawrence, the client's husband.

"Interesting; an unexpected gain."

He murmured softly, noted the current time, and recorded the information in his notebook.

The client, Mrs. Lawrence, was generous with her money; if, on the day of submitting the report, he could catch her husband meeting his lover at the club, he might receive an extra reward.

"But it's also possible that an enraged woman might implicate me."

Xia De mused randomly in his heart, hoping to see Madame Lasoya greeting Mr. Lawrence at the club entrance, but unfortunately, Mr. Lawrence entered the club alone.

Even separated by a street, Xia De could see the smile and excitement on Mr. Lawrence's face; he certainly hadn't come to the club to play cards or drink tea.

"Good luck to you."

He said in his heart, shaking his head as he recorded the details of Mr. Lawrence's attire today to prove the authenticity of his report.