Lord of The Mysterious Realms Chapter 1161

"I admit that I stole Jenkins Williams's identity, but it was not something I did by choice. After taking his place, I remained devoutly... loyally faithful to the Sage. I followed His teachings, embodied His spirit, and studied His scriptures. I may not be Jenkins, but I am a follower of the Sage. God loves all people, and I believe in God. If the Sage has accepted me, this devout and unfortunate stranger, can you, His followers, truly not do the same?"

The voices of the church members died down. They no longer stared at Jenkins, but instead whispered amongst themselves, heads bent together in discussion. Soon, they reached a conclusion. They gave Jenkins a solemn nod and filed out of the room in an orderly fashion.

Now, less than ten people remained in the hall.

Though Jenkins often felt he was far from a model believer, he knew one thing for certain: he was no traitor. He might be a heretical god, but he genuinely admired the Sage's teachings. And nowhere in any sacred text did it say that one god could not have faith in another.

And so, Jenkins was at peace with his own faith, and thus, he could face the members of the Church without guilt.

Even though the hall was much emptier, the voices of accusation had not ceased. Jenkins turned his gaze to his teachers and friends: Papa Oliver, Miss Broniaons, Miss Audrey, Professor Burns, the old elf...

"If I had never come here, Jenkins Williams would have scarcely formed the bonds you all share with him now. I took his place, but in doing so, I gave 'Jenkins' a better life, a brighter future. This may be difficult to accept, but the soul you know is not his—it's mine. The person you came to know was never the man of the past, but the stranger I am today. I have never exploited his identity. I respect it, and I am committed to bringing it honor and dignity."

Papa Oliver stopped speaking. He tugged on Professor Burns's sleeve, and the professor revealed a satisfied expression. Miss Audrey and Miss Bevanna had actually fallen silent the moment Jenkins began to speak to them. They smiled at him, then led his teachers and friends out of the room.

Jenkins believed he hadn't wronged the original Jenkins. On the contrary, having arrived in this strange world through no fault of his own, he had, in fact, helped the deceased Jenkins achieve a better future. He hadn't wronged him, nor had he deliberately taken what rightfully belonged to him.

Only four people were left standing in the hall: Mary Williams, Robert Williams, Newman Williams, and John Williams. They were still waiting for his answer.

Jenkins could have spoken his mind, but facing the four pairs of eyes fixed on him, a thousand words caught in his throat. Even if it wasn't his intention, he had ultimately taken over Jenkins Williams's body. That was an indisputable fact. He, this despicable stranger, had indeed stolen another's identity and was living with another's face.

He made no attempt to explain, muttering instead:

"I'm very sorry about Jenkins."

"But I wasn't the one who killed him. By the time I arrived, he was already gone... I received some of his memories, so I know his soul was shattered the moment he laid eyes on a Mysterious Object. Fragments of his soul clung to mine, and that's how I gained his scattered memories. I am truly sorry about Jenkins. I've used his identity and lived his life. But I swear, I will not tarnish his name, nor will I use his identity for evil."

The Williams family's accusations and curses didn't stop. The four of them recounted stories of the old Jenkins, all while denouncing the impostor before them. ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ꜰʀᴏᴍ novel⦿fire.net

After a long time, they finally said all they had to say. Each one of them glared at Jenkins, but in the end, they turned together and walked out the door.

Jenkins felt guilty before Jenkins's family. Though he was a god of lies, he couldn't often deceive himself.

Now, only Jenkins on the sofa and the corpse on the floor were left in the room. Yet, Jenkins hadn't returned to that cold, damp basement, which meant this was not over.

He scanned the room, hoping to see Chocolate leap out from some corner, meowing accusingly that he wasn't Jenkins.

But then he realized Chocolate would never think that. After all, even the name 'Chocolate' was a gift from him. To a cat, there was no such thing as a stranger. The Jenkins it knew had always been this Jenkins. Of that, there was no doubt.

The first half of the trial was to test if Jenkins could endure the loneliness of being a "stranger." The second half was to test if he could accept the identity of a "stranger."

"So who else is here to accuse me? Why isn't it over yet?"

"Have you forgotten about me?"

The voice came from the floor. The blond 'corpse' of Jenkins sat up and looked at the black-haired Jenkins on the sofa.

The Jenkins on the sofa breathed a sigh of relief and started to laugh.

"What right do you have to accuse me?"

the corpse said calmly.

"But it wasn't my choice! I was forced into this as well! I didn't kill you. And me having your identity is a good thing for you—a dead man. Your family doesn't have to grieve. Your future is guaranteed to be bright. Your entire destiny has changed. What reason do you have to accuse me?"

The corpse repeated, as if to remind him of the fact.

Jenkins felt a sense of ease. Everyone in the hall had put immense pressure on him, but this Jenkins, of all people, could not. He continued to smile as he spoke, but there was a faint hint of anger in his voice:

"Did I take your body, or did your body imprison my soul? Jenkins Williams, if you hadn't died, how would I have become Jenkins Williams? How would I have ended up in this godforsaken world, this backward era? How would I have been forced to live this insane life? I became a stranger, I became what I am now—don't you bear some responsibility for that?"

"Even without me, you might still have ended up in someone else's body, as a stranger."

"But the fact is, I became you. So I can't blame some other dead person. I can only stand here and ask why you had to die. Why did I have to become you? Why did I have to take over your life? Did you think becoming you was some great fortune? Don't you think I've lost things because of this? That I've been hurt by all this?"

The corpse remained silent. After a long moment, it let out a sigh, lowered itself back to the floor, and once again became a true corpse.