Chapter 52
After some time had passed.
Michael boldly walked into the grocery store with several homeless people.
The homeless people following him carried painted pieces of wood, musical instruments with several broken strings, flickering lamps, and things like that.
My mouth opened before I knew it.
“Stop.”
“Yes?”
These were things I had not seen in quite some time.
They were exactly the same things Michael had prepared for the other homeless people when he tried to explain the mafia family to me, spouting nonsense about maintaining proper form and dignity.
But I had no intention of watching that horrible spectacle again, so I sent all the other homeless people outside.
“Damn, I should have raised the quality a little more….”
“Heh.”
“…That’s why I told you to pick up a proper instrument!”
They left while grumbling repeatedly.
Michael adjusted his tie and muttered regretfully,
“Still, it would have helped with the report….”
“You can just explain it verbally.”
Anyway.
Since Rivera and Nova still had not returned from their walk, I was the only one listening to Michael’s explanation─.
[Dyu.]
“Hey, you startled me.”
I coughed while looking at the turret that had appeared from the ceiling.
When something suddenly pops out without making a sound, anyone would be startled.
Anyway, the two of us focused on what Michael was saying.
“Then I shall begin my explanation.”
Perhaps he still could not bring himself to give up on everything, because Michael picked up a wooden board depicting a retro character and slowly continued speaking.
“The homeless man who attacked us a little while ago─.”
[Dyu?!]
“While I am explaining, I would appreciate it if you refrained from speaking except to ask questions.”
[… …Dyu.]
“Anyway, the name of the religious organization to which the homeless man who attacked us belonged is the ‘Infinite Truth Church.’ I looked into it, and apparently it is already fairly well-known among the homeless, more than I expected.”
The name alone reeked of a scam.
Was it something you could enjoy infinitely or whatever?
“What’s it famous for?”
“Apparently, they distribute food for free.”
“Ah.”
I roughly understood.
After all, it was not strange for a church to run a free soup kitchen.
Michael scratched his head and said,
“At least until ‘Hot Dog Man’ appeared, many homeless people apparently went there to escape the cold and hunger. That number probably decreased even further after our organization became properly established.”
He held up a picture of a character who looked like a homeless man, with a question mark floating above his head.
“Well, it is not exactly a place with a good reputation. There are rumors that homeless people entered and disappeared, and many say that homeless people who attended the church for a long time all began acting strangely.”
I slowly nodded while listening to Michael’s explanation.
They even said the food they distributed tasted bad, so I would have chosen expired ingredients developed by a megacorp too, if I were in their place.
Even during my time as a recruit, I witnessed the miracle of my religion changing every week depending on the kind of food being handed out.
The taste of food was a very important matter.
In other words, what that meant was—
“They caused a disturbance on our side because free meals stopped bringing in new believers?”
“That is highly likely.”
Seriously, what the hell.
Perhaps Michael had thought of something similar, because he sighed while pressing his brow.
On the last wooden board Michael held up, a retro character resembling Bolt Boy was causing a commotion in the vacant lot, its eyes spinning as it held a knife, recreating what had happened there.
So the point of that picture was…
‘…No.’
If I asked about it now, I would lose.
Anyway.
There were several strange points.
The man was a little unhinged, but why on earth would a believer in some religious organization attack someone with a knife in a grocery store?
Even going so far as to stab his own neck.
“Infinite… what was it?”
“The Infinite Truth Church.”
“Where is that church?”
I had decided not to go out for the time being.
But I felt like I should go and investigate.
* * *
The borders of the stained glass shone in a riot of colors, like a neon sign.
It was an utterly bizarre sight that could never be seen in a respectable religious organization.
A man in his thirties wearing a mantum so thick it looked difficult to walk in frowned as he listened to the report of a believer following behind him while holding up the hem of his robe.
“Did you say both of them are unharmed?”
“…Y-yes, Venerable Master.”
Hale Creed, the leader of the Infinite Truth Church, which was secretly growing its influence while evading the eyes of the RCPD and city government, thought of a certain grocery store that had recently become a major obstacle to the church’s expansion.
It was a difficult situation in which, at this rate, the supply of ‘believers’ could suffer a tremendous setback.
He had barely managed to establish the foundation of his business, and he could not let it collapse here because of one mere grocery store.
Hale Creed added more words for his loyal believer, who had no choice but to remain loyal.
“No matter what anyone says, they are ‘demons.’ Wicked beings who obstruct our Cycle.”
“I-Is that so?!”
“Yes. I would like to go out and punish them myself, but unfortunately, I have yet to fully complete the task assigned to me in this Cycle….”
“Venerable Master, please do not worry! You must continue to lead us until you enter the Cycle’s ring!”
He looked no different from a genuine fanatic.
People said cult believers had high levels of loyalty, but this believer’s reaction was clearly strange.
Knowing the whole truth, Hale Creed whispered with a kindly smile.
“But we must not let the other people there get hurt either. They are merely poor lambs who have been tempted by the devil.”
If they simply cut off the heads of the boss known as Hot Dog Man and his minions,
the homeless people who could no longer obtain food would have no choice but to rely on the church again.
Hale Creed, who made a business of people through religion, emphasized that fact several times.
“Yes, your words are absolutely correct!”
“Good. …Oh, look at the time. It will soon be time for worship.”
Hale Creed left the ‘special worship room’ with the believer following him so that his robe would not drag on the floor.
Afterward.
When he appeared in the spacious worship hall he used for public services, the believers there showed reactions that were completely opposite to each other.
“Oh…. My God…!!”
“For to lose one’s faith is to─.”
“…Save us from this chaotic world.”
One group was busy praying desperately with both hands clasped, tears and snot streaming down their faces.
“…Hey, is this right?”
“Fuck, I came because they said they’d give us more food. Something about this atmosphere is weird.”
“……They’re guarding the front entrance too?”
The other group, apparently homeless people visiting the church for the first time, was busy looking around with anxious expressions.
‘Heh heh heh….’
But Hale Creed knew the secret that both groups would become his loyal servants, so he merely wore his usual kindly smile.
“Death is no longer the end. May the Cycle protect us.”
“Amen!!”
“Inshallah!”
“Oh, hallelujah!”
Apparently unconcerned with religious terminology, all sorts of closing refrains followed noisily.
Hale Creed quietly nodded as he watched them.
But.
He did not know.
He did not know that a store manager and his subordinate who had infiltrated from a certain ‘grocery store’ were sitting among the loyal believers and pretending to pray with all their might.
“Mutsiel…!!”
“…What religion uses that word?”
“It’s a thing.”
A webtoon that perfectly demonstrated what a promising beginning and a disappointing ending looked like.
It had genuinely been a masterpiece up until the middle….
Abel Anderson─, Hot Dog Man, who had infiltrated the cult, muttered inwardly.
* * *
Infiltration was simpler than I had expected.
There were not even flyers plastered around the cult church’s building with Michael’s face or mine on them.
“Are you new believers?”
“I just came because I was curious….”
“Curiosity? How wonderful!”
What was?
I was pushed back a step by the force of the man’s unnaturally bright smile.
“Being curious means you harbor doubts about this world!”
“No, not to that extent….”
“Excellent! Come in and partake of the delicious feast bestowed by the Venerable Master!”
Although things had gone somewhat differently from the plan I had made, we had nevertheless managed to enter the cult safely.
And we immediately encountered a crisis.
“…What is this?”
“Did I not tell you? It is the feast bestowed by our Venerable Master! Eat as much as you like, as freely as you wish, as much as you want!”
I could not tell whether it was rotten porridge or soup.
A thick, unidentified liquid filled the bowl.
Its color was a very dark gray.
To me, it looked remarkably similar to the color I had seen in the drain of a sink.
“You expect someone to eat this─.”
“Thank you for the meal!!”
“……Michael?”
Michael, being a former corporate executive in Risk City, lifted the plate without hesitation.
A proverb from some country came to mind: if you are going to eat poison, you might as well swallow the plate too.
‘I can’t lose either.’
I squeezed my eyes shut and took a bite of the porridge(?), and a bizarre flavor like an exploding rainbow continued to linger in my mouth.
It was not the kind of rainbow that appeared after rain, but one with the colors and impact of being hit over the head with a golf club.
“Damn it, Neil Druckmann….”
As I listlessly picked at the bowl and took a rough look through its contents, the skull of a mouse with nothing but bones left popped out.
“……”
“Oh? You’re not eating?”
The believer standing beside me looked at me suspiciously.
Should I just punch him and go in….
Just as I was seriously considering it,
Michael, who had already emptied an entire bowl, abruptly held out the empty dish.
“This gentleman seems to have an upset stomach. It is truly delicious. May I have a few more bowls?”
“…Of course.”
The believer left.
I asked Michael,
“You’re not eating it because it actually tastes good, are you?”
“Of course not. Since they claim it is food bestowed by the cult leader, I am merely pretending to eat it enthusiastically.”
“You fucking incredible bastard….”
That was impossible for an ordinary person.
Michael seemed amazing all over again.
…….
“…Seriously, it doesn’t?”
“Yes.”
Then why did he keep eating it?
Anyway, thanks to Michael’s sacrifice, we were able to infiltrate the chapel.
“Let’s go over there.”
“…No matter how I think about it, shouldn’t we be over there?”
I pointed at the homeless people who seemed to belong to the same disconnected atmosphere as us.
But Michael firmly shook his head.
“Creating a shared sense of belonging is important anywhere. And this atmosphere right now…. Something is strange. It would probably be best to simply imitate the existing believers.”
I had noticed that to some extent too.
Pretending to be cult believers as best we could,
we quietly slipped toward the back.
“Security isn’t very tight.”
“It is an ordinary religious facility, after all. …Though I do not know what happens if we go in there.”
Michael’s gaze turned toward a massive wall.
There was no barbed wire visible at the top, but its height alone brought a prison to mind.
“It’s definitely suspicious.”
“Given its height, it would be difficult to get inside unless we subdued the administrator and obtained the key.”
But unlike Michael’s calculations, my gaze was fixed on a window at nearly the same height as the wall.
“…Hot Dog Man? I’m not an enhanced human either, so if I fall from this height, I won’t survive─.”
“Hold on tight.”
“……!!”
We managed to get over the wall without any trouble and discovered a spacious, completely deserted building.
“There aren’t any security cameras either.”
“I-It seems like a place that takes security that seriously. I-If you want to prevent hacking, the best option is not to have any electronic devices that can be hacked in the first place.”
Michael took a deep breath and clenched his trembling fist tightly.
He wasn’t restraining an urge to punch someone, was he?
Maybe it was because we had slipped out during the service.
There were no patrols in sight either.
‘What on earth could be here….’
I wandered around with that thought for about ten minutes.
A steel door marked ‘secret’ appeared before us at the entrance.
It looked similar to the door I had seen underground when I went to Hall Paradise.
‘…Human trafficking?’
Since it was not an entirely unexpected situation, I pushed the steel door open slightly without much surprise.
But.
Beep, beep, beep─.
Along with vital-sign monitors that sounded as though they belonged in a hospital room,
I saw dozens of people lying on beds with something resembling helmets on their heads.
A powerful smell of disinfectant filled the air.
At the same time, I felt the blood throughout my body turn cold.
Michael looked around and clicked his tongue.
“It seems this is a place where they hack people’s cerebral smart chips. In other words……”
“Brainwashing?”
“…That’s right.”
When we approached the bed, a voice was rapidly ringing out, as though it had been played at ten times its normal speed.
[All things return endlessly to the beginning, and the end of life leads back to a new beginning. The Cycle is completed only on the path of the Infinite Truth Church, and only the great Venerable Master, Hale Creed, has ascended above the Cycle. Those who deny the Cycle will lose their way in endless repetition─.]
I smashed the machine to pieces on the spot, but
the person whose eyes were closed did not get up.
They merely drooled like a dazed mute.
“…People whose smart chips have been hacked apparently have an extremely hard time returning to normal. I heard they are essentially as good as dead.”
At the same time, an unpleasant sensation shook my entire body.
【You have dealt with an undefended enemy!】
【Achievement ‘In the Blink of an Eye’ unlocked!】
I realized that my experience had increased.
“…Ha.”
Everything felt fucking awful.
This world, which treated human lives like flies; the woman’s voice, which only appeared to spew nonsense whenever it felt like talking; and even myself, who had instinctively turned my gaze toward the homeless person in another bed.
And so, I─.
* * *
After finishing the afternoon service,
Hale Creed headed toward the ‘special worship room’ and encountered an unexpected visitor.
A face he had never seen before.
But he did not panic and simply smiled.
“Oh dear, it seems you’ve lost your way. If you don’t mind, I could show you around….”
“Shut up.”
The burning eyes glared at him.
“Just die.”