Chapter 11
The points earned in this simulation were more than double the total from the previous two attempts, indicating that Shaer’s desperate gamble had paid off.
After confirming she had enough points for the next simulation, Shaer turned her attention to the skills she had acquired.
The skills she had obtained before, whether it was [Agility] or [Death Reversal], had provided her with significant assistance.
Without Agility, her previous skills might not have even allowed her to kill the first pursuer, let alone handle the subsequent battles.
And Death Reversal had also been beneficial; without that skill bringing her back to consciousness, she might have been devoured long ago, and would never have obtained the vial and notes from the figure in the black robe, nor that strange tentacle.
As Shaer focused, the introduction of her new abilities appeared before her eyes.
“[Precognitive Vision] Lv.1: Passive Skill. Allows you to see the state of all things one second into the future.”
“[Calm Thinking] Lv.1: You can maintain calm and rational thought in extreme situations.”
Looking at the two newly acquired skills, Shaer nodded slightly.
These skills were all based on her performance in the simulation, directly or indirectly related to what she had done in the simulated world.
Just as the system had said at the beginning, she had gained [Agility] from running in her first simulation; she had earned [Death Reversal] from facing death without fear for the first time.
In the last simulation, for some reason, she had anticipated the black-robed figure’s attempt to consume her, which led to her acquiring [Precognitive Vision].
As for [Calm Thinking], it seemed more like a reward akin to [Agility].
Each of these new abilities was immensely valuable to Shaer. [Calm Thinking] would help her resist the hypnotic influence of the black-robed figure’s voice, while [Precognitive Vision] would allow her to avoid threats in advance.
Shaer withdrew her gaze from the system screen and looked at her right hand. Just as she thought about raising it, she could see a faint shadow lifting slightly.
As soon as she dismissed that thought, the shadow dissipated, and a mild dizziness washed over her, akin to the sensation of motion sickness.
It seemed she still needed time to adapt to this passive ability that couldn’t be turned off; she could only rely on gradual acclimatization.
She looked back at the system interface and opened the shop section.
The system’s shop interface displayed many new items. Besides cloaks and clothing, she saw the items she had wanted to acquire in the last simulation.
“[Thomas’s Diary]”
“Fate Points: 1”
“[Duwen’s Research Notes]”
“Fate Points: 2”
“[‘Avenger’ Reproduction Potion]”
“Fate Points: 100”
“[‘Instigator’ Spiritual Material]”
“Fate Points: 50”
Two notebooks, a vial containing black mist, and that tentacle referred to as spiritual material.
What was the “Avenger”? And what about the “Instigator”?
In her earlier conversation with the black-robed figure, he seemed to have mistaken her for someone conducting some kind of “reproduction ritual.” The system had said he was a quasi-supernatural being—was he the one performing the reproduction ritual?
A flurry of questions swirled in Shaer’s mind, accompanied by a wave of drowsiness.
She had expended too much mental energy in the recent simulation, especially when using [Death Reversal], where her mental strength had drained away like water from a pump.
However, she didn’t feel as drained as she had in the simulation; she still had enough energy to do other things, though she felt a bit more sluggish than usual.
Shaer was certain that in the last simulation, she had touched upon some extraordinary powers that were beyond the ordinary. To resolve her current confusion, it was essential to exchange for those two notebooks.
This was to help her better understand the world she had yet to see.
Shaer exchanged for the two notebooks, spending 2 Fate Points.
“Successfully exchanged for [Thomas’s Diary] and [Duwen’s Research Notes]. The spiritual mark in [Duwen’s Research Notes] has been cleared.”
“Remaining Fate Points: 21.”
The research notes cost one more Fate Point than the diary—was that the reason for clearing the spiritual mark inside?
A cheap notebook similar to her own appeared alongside a finely crafted black leather-bound notebook.
She set aside the seemingly ordinary diary and, after a moment’s thought, opened the black leather notebook.
A somewhat angular handwriting appeared before her eyes.
“Reproduction Research Notes—Duwen Fawali—Church of the Savior Goddess.”
The title page bore no other text, so Shaer continued to flip through the pages.
“Like other priests, I have begun to write spiritual notes, hoping to accelerate my ascetic practices. I never imagined that a mere believer could become a servant of the divine. I will devote myself entirely to the church, practicing asceticism in every corner of my life. May the goddess bless me to pass the trials and become a priest.”
“Rustle.”
Shaer turned the page, finding the subsequent entries filled with mundane church activities, lacking anything noteworthy. Soon, she paused on one page.
“High Priest Yulis saw me writing spiritual notes and reprimanded me privately, saying I should not aim too high... But is it wrong to want to offer everything to the goddess sooner?”
“I went to the black market to have someone stamp my notes with a spiritual mark, so no one could see what I was writing. But the look in the eyes of the black merchant who helped me was truly unpleasant.”
From this point on, the previously lazy handwriting began to grow more forceful, and Shaer continued to turn the pages.
“I have done everything that other ascetics have done; I have even suffered more than they have! Why have I not yet gained the recognition of High Priest Yulis?!”
“The goddess said that the more pain we bear, the less suffering there will be in the world. But I have done more than others; why can’t I undergo the reproduction ritual?!”
Reproduction ritual?
Shaer’s interest was finally piqued, and she continued flipping through the pages.
“Yulis has been promoted to High Priest. It seems there is some urgent matter, and she has finally been reassigned from this church. The new High Priest easily passed me through the priest’s assessment. I knew my efforts would be rewarded.”
“The new High Priest taught me how to stamp my spiritual mark, so I no longer have to write my spiritual notes in secret.”
Turning the page.
“I obtained the reproduction potion for ascetics; it’s time to show the goddess my results.”
Turning the page.
“Why... did I fail?”
Turning, turning, turning the pages, the handwriting became increasingly chaotic, and Shaer began to struggle to comprehend the text.
Turning the page.
“It turns out the doctrine was wrong... It’s not my fault.”
“If the suffering in the world is fixed, then all we need to do is kill those who inflict pain on others. The potion was missing something; I know... the goddess told me... the new path is called ‘Avenger’...”
“They don’t understand me... I must find another place to complete my ritual.”
---
**Chapter 10: Deception and the Church of the Savior Goddess**
The notes recorded a plethora of fragmented details, almost laying bare the psychological changes of a person after becoming a believer before Shaer’s eyes.
And those heart-pounding, chaotic characters abruptly ceased when the believer named Duwen sought the “true” reproduction ritual.
This was not the black-robed figure’s notebook; the owner of the notes was a mutilated individual with both ears cut off. Through this diary-like research notebook, Shaer slowly uncovered a hidden corner of this world.
She knew of the Church of the Savior Goddess; two years ago, while searching for extraordinary powers, she had attended a prayer session there for a time.
But at that time, Shaer hadn’t noticed anything unusual about the church; it merely felt like a monotheistic faith with some doctrines reminiscent of Buddhism.
Through Duwen’s research notes, Shaer learned that even the believers and priests within the church were unaware of extraordinary abilities; the church itself operated just like an ordinary one.
To access the extraordinary realm, one had to be chosen to become a servant and then pass an assessment to become a priest before they could touch the church’s mysterious powers.
Duwen, the author of the notes, had originally been just an ordinary believer. It seemed he had experienced some extraordinary event that allowed him to skip the priest stage and be directly chosen as a servant.
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