Chapter 326

Chapter 289: Response

“The God of Steam and Mechanical Innovation… did He drive the steam revolution?”

Inside Green Shade Town No. 32, Dorothy murmured thoughtfully after hearing Beverly’s words. If what Beverly said were true, then this Construct Core was likely the deity who would cast His gaze upon her after the invention of the internal combustion engine.

“If what Beverly says is correct, then the steam revolution was sparked by this Mechanical God through the divine revelations of a key inventor. He would be a direct driver of the First Industrial Revolution. If someone in this world invented the internal combustion engine—the key to the Second Industrial Revolution—without His divine influence, it would be surprising if He didn’t take notice.

“In the rumors mentioned by Beverly… this Mechanical God is a God of Innovation. He will not be satisfied with the current state of civilization, and at the appropriate time, He will trigger the next technological revolution. This means that now is not viewed by Him as the ‘right moment,’ so the invention of the internal combustion engine is not allowed to emerge yet?”

Dorothy thought to herself. After speaking with Beverly, she had a new perspective on this world and its deities.

“The identification of poison distinguishes between mundane and esoteric knowledge, but which knowledge belongs to the mundane and which to the esoteric? Perhaps the authority to define this lies in the hands of the deities. Those deities may be able to influence the scope of poison recognition. Currently, the technology of the internal combustion engine is classified as esoteric, which might indicate that the Construct Core is influencing this classification.

“When I was looking at medical books, I found that this steam revolution era is exceptionally advanced in medicine, with the existence of antibiotics! This proves that the knowledge related to antibiotics does not possess poison recognition. Could this also be influenced by some deity?”

Dorothy reflected deeply. While she couldn’t definitively say that the deities define the scope of poison recognition, it was evident that they had some influence. She could sense that the state of the world today was closely tied to the will of the gods.

“By the way, you mentioned that fifty years ago, the Construct Core was just the Craftsman God, crafting weapons for Glimmer during the Dawn War… is Glimmer referring to the Savior of Radiance?”

Dorothy continued questioning Beverly, who was sipping machine oil with her legs crossed.

“Generally speaking, all scholars who study this myth believe so. But myths are just that—myths. The parties involved often have no idea what happened back then. That ‘Glimmer’ might refer to the same concept as today’s ‘Savior of Radiance,’ or there might be some differences… No one can be certain about the specifics surrounding deities.”

Once Beverly finished, Dorothy pondered before speaking again.

“If what you say about the myth is true, then the Construct Core might indeed be an ally of the Savior of Radiance. But why doesn’t the Radiant Church promote this? Their focus of faith seems to only recognize the Three Saints, while the allies fighting alongside the Savior are treated as if they were a suppressed heresy; there’s not a single church visible in public. Doesn’t that seem a bit unkind?”

Dorothy continued questioning. According to the teachings of the Radiant Church, the Savior of Radiance was the one who single-handedly won the Dawn War and drove out evil spirits, with no mention of allies whatsoever. Ironically, the legends of the King of Light mentioned that he had allies. Based on this alone, the “Glimmer” in the Construct Core myth seemingly aligns more closely with the King of Light.

“Well… does it really matter if it’s unkind? The one that needs mass faith is actually just ‘Light.’ Other deities don’t have much requirement for faith. If the Radiant Church admits the existence of other deities, it would inevitably siphon off many believers, so it’s understandable that they don’t.”

Waving her hand dismissively, Beverly shrugged. Dorothy frowned slightly at her words and pressed on.

“Only ‘Light’ needs mass faith… What’s the relationship between ‘Light’ and faith?” Dorothy asked, furrowing her brows, while Beverly responded, somewhat surprised.

“You don’t know? The primary aspect of ‘Light’ is faith. Many other deities have churches in the material world, but that’s mainly to expand their influence there and to compel their followers to execute their divine commands. They don’t expect to gain anything from their followers. However, ‘Light’ is different. The deity of ‘Light’ can indeed gain power from the faith of its followers; the more believers there are, the stronger their faith, and thus the greater their power.

“That’s why the Radiant Church places such importance on faith, with a reach that spans the globe. It’s the only official faith in the mundane world because they can genuinely convert faith into divine power. Under the shared belief of billions of followers worldwide, Glimmer should be the most powerful among the earthly deities.”

Beverly explained. After hearing her words, Dorothy was momentarily taken aback, recalling how the clergy in the Radiant Church accumulate spiritual power through their earnest prayers to the Three Saints, which seems to enhance the power of the Saints in return. It could be described as a mutually beneficial relationship.

Of course, the source of the Saints’ power would certainly be the faith of those billions of ordinary people. Compared to the faith of countless commoners from different countries, the prayers from the clergy within the Radiant Church might merely serve to test their sincerity.

With that being said, it became clear why the Radiant Church aims to be the main official institution maintaining stability in the mundane world. The faith of ordinary people is essential to them, leading them to maintain order in the material realm to some extent.

After listening to Beverly’s words, Dorothy reflected. She felt quite satisfied with how much she learned from her visit.

“Well… thank you. This information is very useful to me. By the way, you’re not planning to charge me for this information, are you?” Dorothy asked Beverly, who shrugged in response.

“Information fee? These bits of information aren’t particularly rare or confidential, not to the extent of charging a fee. Last time we used your intel, we made quite a profit, and now you’re my VIP client. As a VIP, this little information is on the house~”

Beverly waved her hand. After hearing her response, Dorothy felt a surge of emotion, thinking to herself that such information would typically cost around fifty to sixty pounds if her father were the one asking.

“Then in that case, thank you. I’ve almost finished my business here, so I’ll be leaving now. Goodbye, next time I’ll treat you to some oil.”

Having asked everything she needed to, Dorothy prepared to say goodbye to Beverly. Just then, Beverly spoke up again.

“Wait a moment, don’t be so hasty. I happen to have a letter specifically for you. I was thinking of brewing some coffee to bring it to your door, but you came over instead.”

Beverly stopped Dorothy, who was quite surprised after hearing this.

“My letter? Who sent it?”

“Client personal information is confidential; I can’t disclose that. Don’t forget, this mailing business was your suggestion for us to start. Just wait here; I’ll go get the letter.”

Saying this, Beverly placed her machine oil cup on the coffee table, then stood up from the sofa and walked to a wall. After twisting a wall lamp, a series of clicking mechanical sounds echoed throughout the room. The floor section where Beverly stood suddenly sank, taking her down into the ground.

“What a magical house…”

Watching the scene unfold, Dorothy murmured quietly to herself. She then settled back onto the sofa and waited in silence for Beverly to return. During her wait, she began to observe her neighbor’s decoration carefully.

‘Though Beverly is a clockwork being and lives in a mechanized house, the facade is surprisingly well crafted. At least it looks like a place that a normal person would reside in.’

As Dorothy pondered this, her attention shifted to the open coffee table, where a copy of the Tivyán Morning News lay open. The news article she noticed immediately caught her eye.

“Bloody Incident! The western Tivyán Coal Ash District has seen another outbreak of street violence, marking the fourth such event in two weeks!”

Upon seeing the exaggerated headline in the newspaper, Dorothy’s interest piqued, and she picked up the paper to read further. It reported a tragic incident in west Tivyán where a man used a kn*fe in plain sight to m*rder another passerby before fleeing. The assailant had since been captured by the police.

At a glance, this did not seem like an extraordinary case—the perpetrator and the victim were both ordinary people, unlike Adele, a major celebrity. Furthermore, due to the numerous witnesses present during the crime, the guilt of the killer was undeniable, and after being captured, the killer admitted the victim was his enemy. It was a typical case of revenge; there was nothing particularly mysterious about it.

This was an extremely ordinary case. Its publication in the newspaper was due to the alarming fact that such incidents had repeatedly occurred four times in two weeks within the same region. In other words, street violence had happened several times in a month, leading to a degree of panic.

Within the media reports in Dorothy’s hands, the incidents in west Tivyán were speculated to be interconnected and were compared to the recent highly publicized Night Demon case, questioning if there was any underlying horror.

In response to these speculations, the police issued a statement in the newspaper, clarifying that the four street m*rder cases were independent incidents, stating that the assailants had been swiftly captured and confessed to their crimes, revealing a variety of motives. Some were crimes of opportunity, some were acts of revenge, while others stemmed from arguments with their partners on the street, culminating in impulsive violence.

In summary, it seemed that this region had experienced an unbelievable stretch of four consecutive street killings, yet indeed, these four cases had no connections. The four assailants had all been apprehended and confessed, with motives stemming from various spontaneous reasons.

While it sounded unbelievable, the fact remained. No wonder the newspaper reported it so prominently, as it also contained many criticisms regarding the security situation in the west Tivyán Coal Ash District, condemning its already poor safety record as deteriorating significantly in recent times.

“It really does feel a bit strange: a series of four impulsive street murders within two weeks… I wonder if it’s just a coincidence. Although I’ve heard that west Tivyán has security issues, I didn’t realize it was this bad…”

Dorothy murmured as she examined the newspaper. This series of news was trending almost as much as the notoriously infamous Night Demon. However, while the Night Demon primarily targeted individuals of some status and power, the victims of this series were all ordinary people, suggesting they should have no connection.

“But even so, having such sudden, unanticipated street murders occurring consecutively is still quite terrifying. I wonder what drives people to lose control over their emotions like this?”

As Dorothy continued reading the news, lost in thought, suddenly, a sound of mechanical movement echoed through the room. The floor that had opened beneath her earlier gradually lifted again, with Beverly’s figure rising back up, this time holding an envelope.

“Here you go, ‘Detective’ Miss, this is a letter for you.”

Walking up to Dorothy, Beverly handed over the envelope. Upon hearing the term “detective,” Dorothy paused momentarily, then began to carefully examine the envelope in her hands. Although it bore no writing, she could detect a faint fragrance, suggesting that it had been intentionally sprayed with perfume.

The title of detective and the perfumed envelope led Dorothy to almost immediately guess who had sent the letter.

“Thank you~”

After tucking the letter away, Dorothy quickly bid farewell to Beverly, then hurried back home. Sitting on her own sofa, she tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter inside, which was written in beautiful, elegant letters.

“Dear Detective—Mr. Ed…

“I have now acquired important leads regarding my teacher. As per our last agreement, I hereby inform you through the White Stone Craftsmen Guild. I hope you can revisit the Feiteng Theatre before eight o’clock tonight. Upon your arrival, I will share with you what I currently know. Perhaps we can collaborate this time.

“Forever your admirer—Adele Briouze.”