"Which aspect of Feysac?"
Silas pressed further.
"I couldn't really say which aspect."
Justice Audrey hadn't expected Temperance to take an interest in this matter, but she answered honestly all the same.
"Broadly speaking, though, it comes down to this: hostility toward Feysac has been growing somewhat among everyone."
The nobility stood at the top of this country, and because of their considerable influence, the prevailing mood within their circles would gradually spread through the whole of society.
"Heh,"
Hanged Man Alger let out a cold laugh. "I hear the same thing is happening on Feysac's side too. From farmers to nobles, they're all playing up how mean and greedy the people of Loen are, and thinking the empire ought to push south and seize warmer, wetter land."
In other words, the atmosphere between the two nations was quietly worsening.
Even before this, however, the two countries already had plenty of disputes over economics, culture, and colonial territory, so things hadn't turned into what they were today all at once. "Relations between the two countries were never all that good to begin with."
Magician Fors sighed. "The papers have never stopped attacking the Feysac people.
Silas didn't interject.
He was considering whether all this had any connection to the death of Senior Deacon Sylvester. But there was simply too little information at hand for him to reach any firm conclusion.
"Keep an eye on this for me."
He said to Justice.
"Understood."
Audrey agreed.
Why would Mr. Temperance take an interest in something like this? It really made her curious.
she thought to herself.
After that, the group moved on to other matters.
Such as how the people of the City of Silver were getting food in their camp at Afternoon Town.
Sun answered that aside from some blackface grass powder, they'd also cut meat from the less contaminated parts of the monsters to supplement their supplies, which drew a wave of discomfort from everyone present.
Once no one seemed to have much desire to talk further, Mr. The Fool at the head of the table spoke up once more. "Let's stop here for today."
"Your will is our guiding principle."
Everyone rose and spoke the words at once, then was swallowed by deep crimson and left the gray fog. Only Silas and World, at the far end of the bronze long table, sat back down after saying it.
Their own little gathering of transmigrators had officially begun.
"Nicely done, Craziest Hunter, Gehrman Sparrow."
Silas said with a smile to Klein.
"Don't mock me."
Klein made the World puppet wave a hand. "Compared to you, I'm not that mad."
After that brief joke, the two of them relaxed a bit and could get down to more serious talk.
"So how's it going? Have you made it back to Loen yet?"
Klein asked first. "What identity are you using now?"
He himself was currently considering returning to Backlund, planning to draw on Silas's identity and experience to flesh out his own cover.
As for why he wanted to return to Backlund, it was naturally to take revenge on Ince, while also continuing to advance.
Potion formulas for the Seer pathway were quite difficult to come by, and the only reliable channel Klein could think of was the notebook belonging to the Antigonus family, which was currently kept underground in Backlund's Evernight Church.
Silas thought it over.
Should he tell Klein that he'd become a Senior Deacon of the church?
Telling him shouldn't cost him anything... Once he'd worked that much out, Silas answered plainly. "You might not believe it, but I'm now a Senior Deacon of the Goddess's Church."
The moment the words left his mouth, Klein's body went rigid.
Senior Deacon?
How had he gone back to the church without a word and become a Senior Deacon on top of it?
Wasn't that one of the most crucial positions in the Evernight Goddess's Church!
His reaction was so intense that it caused a ripple in the gray fog at the head of the bronze long table, a wave sent out by his true body's astonishment.
Fortunately, Silas's attention was fixed on World at the opposite end of the table, and he didn't notice.
That had nearly given him away...
Klein let out a breath, still shaken by how close that had been, and made the World puppet speak again in its hoarse voice, not bothering to hide the astonishment in his tone. "Senior Deacon... you're not joking?"
"Of course not. It's like this..."
Silas gave a brief account of why he'd joined the Evernight Goddess's Church.
He didn't mention the mysterious woman he suspected of being the Goddess, or the Medici ritual. He only said that when he'd been attacked by "Tail Devourer" Ouroboros, "Servant of Concealment" Lady Ariana had suddenly appeared, helped him, and extended an invitation to recruit him.
So the church had actually recruited Silas back...
Klein found this quite unexpected once he'd heard it all, and on top of that, they'd appointed him Senior Deacon... wait a moment!
Something suddenly occurred to him, and he asked hurriedly, "Oh, right, with your current standing in the church, you should be able to easily get past the Charnes Gate, shouldn't you?"
"Should be able to, yes."
Silas glanced at him, sensing his eagerness, and asked, "What is it?"
"Behind the Charnes Gate in the Backlund church, there's something that can provide the Sequence 4 potion formula for the Seer pathway."
Klein answered, his tone growing more excited.
This was exactly what it meant to have friends in high places.
He'd originally been racking his brains over how to sneak into the church and steal that notebook. Now, though, he could simply have Silas use his privileges to bring it out for him!
After all, he only meant to learn the formula, not to keep the notebook. At worst he'd look it over and have Silas put it back afterward.
The thought put him instantly at ease.
"I see."
Silas thought about it. "Should be no problem. Once you're back in Backlund, we can talk it over in detail."
"Of course."
Seeing how readily Silas agreed, Klein felt rather pleased.
He thought for a moment, then went on. "This past week I've still been at sea, you know, like Hanged Man and Hermit said, I killed the Admiral of Blood, and teamed up with your first mate to hunt down a few devils... none of that really matters, though. I mean to get back to Backlund as soon as I can."
"I've gone back to the church, and I've taken on a new identity now, Ahab Ishmael."
Silas shared his own experiences as well. "Oh, and while I was at it, I ran into Leonard and Lady Daly."
Leonard...
Klein immediately thought of his former colleague, and of a certain piece of unusual information about him.
"Be careful about Leonard." His tone turned serious. "I learned something from the magic mirror Arrodes: there's an angel from the Zoroast family parasitizing his body."
Silas froze for a moment.
Two pieces of what Klein had said left him startled.
First, wasn't the magic mirror Arrodes a Beyonder item belonging to the Steam Church? Was Klein still able to reach it?
Second, what did it mean that there was an angel parasitizing Leonard's body?