Mystery Detective of the Steam World

Chapter 273 The Gaps in the Text

The village church was small, just an ordinary, dilapidated local church. And perhaps because of the rampage of these fish-men, the entire church was now filled with some kind of blasphemous and evil symbols and writings, and the All-Knowing Eye hanging behind the pulpit had been completely destroyed.

Even the pews that were originally placed in the church were smashed to pieces and piled up haphazardly around the perimeter.

Yeah, it must have been done by that big fishman from before.

"This is too much..."

Looking at the desecrated and damaged church before her, Sophia spoke with unease. She was just an ordinary person and never imagined that someone would be so "rebellious" as to vandalize the Holy Church.

"The altar, the altar, the altar... Ah, it's over there. How do I open it?"

Katie excitedly approached the altar behind the podium, gazing at it curiously. The altar was made of stone and looked incredibly sturdy. Perhaps that was why it hadn't been destroyed.

Is there some kind of organization involved?

Sophia then walked over and looked at the altar, speaking to it.

"I remember when Mr. Harold took me to the secret room before, he opened some kind of mechanism..."

"The office, the office... Ah, I can't find it, this is so troublesome!"

Katie looked the altar up and down, but still couldn't find any mechanism, so she reached out and grabbed the altar.

"Miss Katie? What are you going to do?"

"Hmm? Let me see below. Maybe there's something underneath the altar."

"But this is very heavy..."

"It's okay, it's okay, hey—!"

As Katie spoke, she grabbed the altar and then lifted it upwards with force!
"Squeak—!"

With a piercing metallic scraping sound, the altar was lifted up by Katie. Sophia could even see the steel bars connecting the altar twisting and deforming beneath it, emitting a shrill scream.

"Whoa, Miss Katie, down there, down there!"

"under?"

Hearing Sophia's words, Katie instinctively lifted the altar above her head and looked down. As she did so, the steel bar below reached its limit. Sophia stared in disbelief as the bar stretched longer and longer with Katie's movements, then with a loud "thud," the entire bar was pulled out like a spring. Sophia even saw a thick layer of steel plate attached to the bar…

Huh? What am I seeing? Am I dreaming?

Just as Sofia was completely confused and didn't know what to do, Katie's excited voice reached her ears.

"Ah, I found it!"

"Hey?"

Upon hearing Katie's words, Sophia subconsciously looked down at the ground and discovered a circular hole in it. Inside the hole was the half of the stone disc they were looking for.

While Katie and Sophia were searching for the relics, Levi didn't join them. Instead, he went to a small room next to the church.

Every church has a bishop's private room, and these dedicated staff members record recent events. After all, it's part of their job, not just simple diary writing. Like a work log, Levi didn't believe a word the strange man said.

What he needs to find now is evidence, evidence that records exactly what happened in this city.

Evidence recorded in writing, not through oral accounts.

"It should be here..."

Levi investigated the bishop's room for a moment, then found a black-covered notebook from the desk lying on the side.

He opened the notebook and began to read the records inside.

[Month X, Day X]

The time was nearly ten years ago, which means that the town still existed at least ten years ago.

But it has never been in contact with the outside world? At least the villages outside the Great Salt Lake don't even know it exists?
…The situation gradually became strange. Deans spread a new faith among the fishermen, claiming that faith in a new god would bring them greater catches and even rewards. This was outright heresy, and I had warned him repeatedly. If the diocesan bishop of the Holy Church were to find out what he was doing, Deans would surely be burned at the stake, but my warnings had been of no use.

[Month X, Day X]

"…If I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, I truly couldn't have imagined such a thing could happen. I'd never seen such a bountiful catch before, but now I was witnessing it. The enormous, fat fish in the nets were practically bursting them apart. Could this truly be the power of their so-called new god?"

No, this must be just a coincidence. Only the Holy Lord is an omniscient and omnipotent god. The others are merely evil beings using the Holy Lord's power to deceive humanity!

Yes, this is indeed the Holy Bishop's view on other gods and beliefs. They proclaim that the Holy Lord is omniscient and omnipotent, and consider other so-called gods to be nothing more than heretics who misappropriate the Holy Lord's power to deceive mortals.

This logic... I have to say, is quite convincing.

[Month X, Day X]

Am I dreaming? In just one night, the entire lakeshore was covered with jewels and exquisite ornaments, all made of gold and precious stones. I've never seen so much gold before; it's as if all the gold in the entire vault has been taken out. Deans says it's a reward from the new god to the believers… I want to say it's a lie, but I know that given Deans' current situation, he couldn't possibly have produced so much gold.

Holy Lord, please guide me. What should I do to bring these people, whose eyes are blinded by greed, back to your glory? 】 It's simple, Holy Lord, just give them gold.

Upon reading this, Li Wei couldn't help but scoff. In his view, all those so-called religious ascetic practices were just excuses. Ultimately, they were just unable to meet the needs of others, so they resorted to manipulation, saying that the suffering you were enduring was all for atonement, and that as long as you endured and endured some more, you would eventually be able to atone for your sins and go to heaven.

It's all bullshit.

If someone gets a serious illness that God cannot cure but other gods can, what's wrong with that person converting to Christianity?
What gives you the right to accuse someone of being corrupt and degenerate?
If you're so capable, why don't you try treating illnesses yourself?

Why blame others for disloyalty when you can't cure a patient instead of blaming your own poor skills?

The old holy bishops had this problem, but the Queen has now reformed them, making them more secular. Churches are no longer just about religious ceremonies and prayer; they must also shoulder public service obligations such as healthcare and education.

At least don't just talk the talk without walking the walk.

This priest is like that; he says here that the fishermen are blinded by greed, but in the end, he can't come up with a solution and can only write it down in his little notebook.

[Month X, Day X]

No one comes to the church anymore; people even avoid it. Holy Lord, why have you subjected me to such torment? Is this also a test from You? What can I do to make those fishermen abandon their evil faith and return to Your embrace?

As for Li Wei, there's just no way around it. Modern scams and pyramid schemes are the same. Even when the real police come to your door and say you're a scammer, they still insist that the money is theirs and they're happy to be scammed. Or they agree to everything one minute, and then find another way to give the money to the scammer the next.

Ultimately, people are always easily deceived.

If they don't report the crime after being scammed, that would be consistent.

Unfortunately, most people, after realizing they've been scammed, lose their initial confidence and instead cry and beg for mercy.

This is just a scammer trying to get something for nothing. If they actually bring you gold and silver jewelry, you'll be even more addicted and unable to extricate yourself.

[Month X, Day X]

They are building brand new idols, so blasphemous… By God, I simply cannot imagine it! This blasphemy must be stopped! I must stop them, even if it costs me my life!

Well, this is the last record. It seems this priest did fulfill his vow and risked his life.

Unfortunately, judging from that statue, his sacrifice was of little use... huh?

Li Wei casually flipped through the back and then found the following passage written in the corner of the last page of this work record.

I had no other choice but to do this. I hope the Holy Lord can forgive me. This is the only way to protect the sacred relic.

"…………………"

Li Wei stared at the passage, studied it carefully for a moment, and finally did not write the name of the person who left the message. However, judging from the handwriting, it was not the same person as the priest who had previously kept the work diary.

And the meaning of this passage is……………

"Dong dong dong."

Hurried footsteps approached, and Li Wei looked up in the direction of the sound. He saw Katie excitedly running in, holding half a stone plate. Judging from its size, it was about half the size of a serving plate.

"Mr. Levi, look, we've found the sacred object!"

"Well done."

Looking at the relic in Katie's hand, Levi nodded.

"Where was it found?"

"There's a small hole under the altar, hidden inside!"

"How did you guys... never mind, I guessed it."

Seeing the utterly astonished expression on Sophia's face behind him, Li Wei shook his head; he already knew the answer without even asking.

Li Wei took the stone plate from Katie's hand and examined it closely. It was a very simple stone plate with nothing special about it, looking like a simple, unfinished stone artwork.

"Yes, very well done. You can put it away now."

"Ok!"

Katie took the stone plate, put it back in her bag, and then looked at Levi with curiosity.

"Mr. Li Wei, what have you discovered?"

"Something interesting, um, but I can't say right now."

Li Wei put the work record back into his pocket.

"Next, let's go to the second location."

(End of this chapter)