Chapter 2023: Chapter 2023

The man and the beast landed on the transparent ceiling of the floating conference hall. After getting to his feet, Jenkins checked the unicorn's injuries. With a pang of sympathy, he treated its wounds before temporarily sending it away. Only then did he turn to look back at where the attack had come from, but there was nothing in the rainy night sky.

He blinked, and a black spiritual aura outlined the form of a colossal machine in the air. It wasn't a humanoid mechanism, but a bizarre device constructed from three triangular pyramids of equal size. Each pyramid housed its own independent steam-powered system, and they were all interconnected by flexible, retractable metal tubes.

In the center of the three pyramids floated a massive, shuttle-shaped piece of metal that resembled an eye. The moment Jenkins's gaze fell upon it, the pupil within that eye swiveled to face him.

A tremendous force slammed into him, but having been prepared this time, Jenkins crossed his arms before his head and managed to block the power striking him from the void.

The essence of telekinesis was the application of immense spiritual power—in other words, the 'power of thought.' Jenkins himself, for instance, could make a stone shatter with nothing more than a focused gaze. Such an ability was nothing new for high-level Enchanters, particularly those who specialized in psionics and spellcasting, but it was the first time Jenkins had ever seen a metallic construct possess such formidable telekinetic strength.

Then again, considering the Difference Engine could even dream, the idea wasn't so fantastic upon reflection.

He flicked a finger, and a droplet of water before him froze into a pellet of ice, shooting forward into the curtain of rain. With every collision against a falling drop, another rapidly flying ice bead was created in the air.

Following the flick of his finger, a soft, crackling sound rippled through the air, gradually spreading into the distance. In the space of a single breath, the colossal flying machine, invisible to the naked eye, was sealed within a massive block of ice.

The machine could fly, but the block of ice could not. Once it had fully formed, bereft of the supernatural force holding it aloft, the chunk of ice—which appeared to have nothing at its center—began to plummet.

But it had barely begun its descent when the space around it warped violently. A gigantic mouth materialized in the air, then abruptly swallowed the block of ice whole before vanishing once more.

This time it wasn't invisibility, but a retreat into another dimension, so even Jenkins's eyes couldn't track its precise destination.

He stood on the building's rooftop, Saint's Sword in hand, carefully scanning his surroundings. His ears strained to distinguish any unusual sounds amidst the cacophony of the downpour, and in his concentration, he failed to notice that the people below were all staring up at him.

The cat in the room below was the first to spot the enemy. Unfortunately, since he hadn't brought the cat with him, Jenkins received no warning. He was only a fraction of a second slower than Chocolate, spinning abruptly and thrusting his sword forward, only to find himself facing that enormous, abyss-like mouth.

It was a standard rectangular block of metal. A fissure split open across its larger face, widening to reveal teeth like triangular metal shards embedded along its edges, and an internal darkness completely disproportionate to the block's thickness.

The sword plunged into the mouth, and a powerful suction immediately tried to pull it in. Jenkins was already thrusting forward, and the weapon nearly flew from his grasp. He had no choice but to retract the Saint's Sword into his spirit.

But the suction didn't cease. Having lost the sword as its target, it now tried to pull Jenkins in.

"Did you think I was so weak?"

He scoffed inwardly. His peripheral vision caught the people below watching him, and he was just about to...

"No, this is a perfect opportunity!"

He stood his ground, feigning resistance against the suction. Just then, the invisible eye reappeared high in the sky behind him. As its metallic pupil began to glow faintly, an immense, intangible force slammed directly into Jenkins's back.

And so, Jenkins, having no eyes in the back of his head, was unfortunatey lifted off his feet. The giant mouth, its surface area far greater than his own, opened wide, and then—

Everyone directly below, their heads still tilted upward, witnessed the brutal scene. The metallic mouth snapped shut completely. Along the seam that remained visible, there were even traces of red bloodstains being washed away by the rain.

They couldn't see the invisible eye; they only saw the giant mouth fade into the air.

Alexia Miller lowered her head and looked at Jenkins, who had just opened his eyes in the seat beside her.

"Incredible," she said. "You're not actually planning to have a Believer of Lies exit the stage with such a crude trick, are you? Even if hundreds of people witnessed a Believer of Lies being swallowed and crushed by that giant mouth, how many of them do you really think will believe it?"

"Crude? Oh, people don't even know who that particular Believer of Lies was. After all, he didn't even have his cat with him. Compared to the sudden death of the famous 'Miss Fabry,' 'Mr. Candle,' or even 'the Man in the Black Robe' right before everyone's eyes, the death of an 'unknown, unidentified, but definitely one of the Savior candidates' has a much smaller impact, don't you think?"

He retorted, then stood and glanced around. The clamor continued. Most people had no idea who that had been, but those who did were now completely stunned. Thıs text ıs hosted at novel•fire.net

"Besides, the Church has no idea how many Believers of Lies there are. Now that one has died, it's merely subtracting one from an unknown variable, which still leaves an unknown variable. The method may be a bit crude, but trust me, Alexia. People will believe it."

"You truly are a grand deceiver."

The petite woman lamented, then looked up toward the ceiling.

"What was that red stuff earlier?"

"That red was blood. Blood I created. If I had used dye or tomato sauce, the trick would inevitably have been discovered afterward. I dispelled the projection at that exact moment. My real body was right here beside you, so no matter what happened to the projection, I wouldn't have suffered any fatal harm."

Reality isn't a story or a novel; people receive no narration beyond what they witness with their own eyes. And what they had just witnessed was, quite clearly, a member of the Believers of Lies dying inside that metallic maw.

They might want to confirm if it was true, but they would find there was absolutely no way to do so.

Therefore, to convince the Church that someone had truly died, Jenkins projected himself outside once more. The battle was still raging. With no Believer of Lies to intercept the metal eye and mouth, the Church's demigods had been forced to take their place.

He appeared on the ground just like that, casually kicking aside a roaring corpse that was about to self-destruct, aiding the woman in front of him.

"Where is our companion?"

"A moment ago, one of our companions came to help you. He was riding a unicorn and carrying that sword. But now he's vanished, and the jade tablet that symbolizes his identity has shattered! What in the world happened?"

Miss Strass was at a loss for words, then her eyes suddenly widened as she stared behind him.

Jenkins spun around to see a metallic butterfly taking shape in the rain. It was composed of countless smaller, gear-like butterflies, but when its two wings parted, Jenkins saw clearly that they were actually two enormous ears.

"What is that thing?"

He only had time to utter those words before shoving Miss Strass aside, allowing himself to be enveloped by the metallic butterflies. Miss Strass stumbled back, watching helplessly as the man vanished into the swarm.

A sickening crunch of breaking bone followed, and then a spray of blood shot out from the swarm, splattering across Miss Strass. She was stunned, as was another Nightwatch squad on standby nearby.

The butterflies quickly dispersed, re-forming into the shape of two ears in the air. On the ground, the puddles of red blood were steadily diluted by the rain. A pile of skeletal fragments lay heaped together, a truly horrifying sight.

"I don't know what you were up to, but I'm guessing you just died again."

Alexia remarked, looking at Jenkins as he opened his eyes once more.

"You're not actually planning to die six times, are you? Do you think the Church will believe that?"

"Not six. Although the Believers of Lies occupy six slots, I intend for there to be seven of us. Otherwise, if each emblem corresponds to exactly one person, wouldn't that be too much of a coincidence?

But it doesn't matter whether the Church believes it. What's important is that a Believer of Lies has genuinely died in front of witnesses. The Difference Engine has probably figured out my identity by now, and it won't pass up any opportunity to kill me. This makes things quite convenient; otherwise, it would be difficult to find such a perfect moment for a 'death.' People aren't going to assume the Difference Engine is cooperating with me to fake my death, are they?"

He said with a lighthearted air.

"So, Mr. Deceiver, you're just going to abandon your original plan that easily?"

"Plans must always adapt to changing circumstances. And they don't all have to die. Wouldn't it be better if one or two were left to attend the negotiations? I'll leave things here in your capable hands. I'm off."

With that, he gently kissed Alexia on the cheek, projected himself back to his home, flew to the church on the unicorn, and then leaped down from above Miss Bevanna.

He bellowed the moment he landed.

"You owe me an explanation!"

His right foot landed squarely in a puddle, but he paid it no mind.

"How have two of our companions suddenly died?"

"And which one are you?"

Miss Bevanna asked, bewildered.

A mountain-like mass of metal plummeted from the sky, crushing the man into a pulp right before Miss Bevanna's eyes. The metallic mass rose again. Its towering shape did indeed resemble a small mountain, but it was actually in the shape of a nose.

As its nostrils flared, jets of scorching steam shot out. Through the white, superheated gas, Miss Bevanna could vaguely make out the mangled corpse on the ground. It was unmistakably a corpse, not a fake.

"These charlatans... they're trying to deceive us, aren't they?"

Miss Bevanna couldn't believe it either. Or more accurately, she didn't dare to.

Jenkins stated as he opened his eyes.

"You're being ridiculous."

Alexia fiddled with her napkin, not even glancing at Jenkins.