“Could it be that my luck is really that bad?”
Xia De pondered his recent encounter with Schneider, but his rumbling stomach pulled him back to reality. The commission was clearly the most important thing right now.
Less than twelve hours after he became a Time Traveler, Xia De had to learn to endure hunger. If he had traveled to a forest, he might have had a chance to hunt. If it was a chaotic era, he might have found food.
But he was in an orderly City like this, and to fill his stomach, he had to follow the rules. Xia De stood at the entrance of the newspaper office, looking at the club nearby where "upper-class people" came and went, hoping the feeling of hunger would pass. Fortunately, he only needed to stand in the fog and wait; if he needed to chase someone, he would truly be helpless.
“I’ve never heard of a Time Traveler starving.”
He wanted to complain about his incompetence, but the current situation was helpless. He could only hope that The Lady would appear quickly so he could submit his report to his employer.
As he stood there lost in thought, someone handed him a flyer, and Xia De took it instinctively. He looked up and saw a smiling, round-faced Priest, dressed in a white sacrificial robe. The church’s holy emblem was on his left chest, and a black pendant hung from his neck as he distributed papers to the nearby crowd.
He looked down and saw that what had been handed to him was promotional material for the War and Peace Church. When Xia De had rummaged through items in the house, he had learned about the world’s religious landscape and knew this was one of the Orthodox Churches.
In the past eras of this world, there were many stories of various gods, but in the current era, only five gods are officially recognized by the government and the populace. Thus, the mainstream beliefs of the world are these five Orthodox Gods—
father peace, also known as the God of War and Peace, with a white dove with light gray wingtips as its holy emblem;
Mr. Dawn, also known as the God of Light and Shadow, with an incomplete circle of brass as its holy emblem;
Lantern Old Man, also known as the God of Sun and Earth, with a golden sun pattern as its holy emblem;
Lady of Creation, also known as the God of Creation and Destruction, with a silver wrench as its holy emblem;
Lord of All Things, also known as the God of Nature and Malice, with two overlapping leaves, one withered yellow and one green, as its holy emblem. The old man who transported the body not long ago was a member of the Natural Church.
“Hmm? Why are the divine duties proclaimed by the Orthodox Gods all opposing concepts?”
Thinking of this, Xia De suddenly had more thoughts about this world. But that indescribable feeling could not be better expressed to himself. Vaguely, he seemed to touch some kind of power, and whispers sounded in his ears:
【You have sensed ‘Miracle’.】
This time it was "Miracle," one of the four elements. So far, Xia De had encountered all of them except for blasphemy. According to the information mentioned by the voice in his mind, it seemed that only by touching all four complete elements would he be qualified to touch the mysterious and push open the door to the extraordinary.
“It seems simpler than I thought. I’ve touched three-quarters of them in just half a day.”
Then the woman’s laughter echoed in his head again; it was truly beautiful.
The five Orthodox Churches are not hostile to each other. Their relationship is at least much better than the relationships between human kingdoms.
The churches vary in strength in different regions, but in Tobesk City, the pearl of the North, all five churches have their cathedrals, and there is a relatively “friendly” competition among them.
Xia De thought about these things, looking at the printed material in his hand, and sighed that he wouldn't need to "invent" the printing press himself. Although the print quality wasn't very high, at least...
His eyes suddenly widened as he discovered important information. Most of the flyer introduced the doctrines of the Orthodox God, father peace, and welcomed believers and infidels to attend the weekly scheduled scripture readings and sermons at the church.
Importantly, at the bottom of the paper, it stated that holding this flyer and queuing at the church entrance at 5:30 PM on Saturday would allow one to receive free relief food. It also stated in small print that no matter how long the queue, as long as one appeared before 6:00 PM, they would definitely receive a number tag and thus definitely receive food.
Even if it was embarrassing to receive such relief food, it at least let Xia De know that he certainly wouldn't starve to death today. He rubbed his nose, noted down the address of the War and Peace Church, and then very solemnly folded the strongly ink-scented flyer and tucked it into Hamilton’s notebook.
He quietly thanked that God in his heart. Although the feeling of hunger still hadn't subsided, his mood had improved a lot.
“My luck isn’t actually that bad.”
Xia De thought to himself, knowing that Mrs. Lasoya, the subject of the investigation, wouldn't come out for at least an hour or two once she entered the club. He wondered if he could talk to the Priest.
Belief in God is widespread in this world; atheists are a minority among minorities. Of course, as long as one doesn't openly shout that they don't believe in God, it's fine, but Xia De was interested in understanding these so-called Orthodox Gods. In a world where faith exists, being ignorant of these matters is even more dangerous.
He was still thinking about how to strike up a conversation when the Priest had already walked away. He felt very regretful but didn't chase after him, instead continuing to stand there and wait. After all, once he found his footing, he would have plenty of time to understand all of this.
There were quite a few people standing at the newspaper office entrance like him. Most were reporters waiting for new news, and a small number were idlers working for the newspaper. Today was Saturday, and even though the weather was foggy, Valente Pedestrian Street, as a main thoroughfare, was very lively, so so many people standing here wasn't out of place.
Although it was called a “Pedestrian Street,” horse-drawn carriages were not prohibited from passing through. Xia De observed the club while watching passersby and carriages, believing this would help him better integrate into the environment.
The air was filled with a burnt smell, which was, of course, smog. But the smell wasn't very strong; it was just that the fog lingering in the air became thicker and thicker as the sun moved from overhead towards the west.
Xia De worried about his physical condition. Lost in thought, he saw another carriage stop at the club entrance. He immediately looked up and saw that it was Mr. Lawrence, the client’s husband.
“Interesting, an unexpected gain.”
He said softly, noting the current time and writing the information in his notebook.
Mrs. Lawrence, the client, was generous. If he caught her husband and his lover meeting at the club on the day he submitted the report, he might get an extra reward.
“But it’s also possible that an angry woman will implicate me.”
Xia De thought wildly, hoping to see Mrs. Lasoya greeting Mr. Lawrence at the club entrance, but unfortunately, Mr. Lawrence walked into the club by himself.
Even though there was a street between them, Xia De could see the smile and excitement on Mr. Lawrence’s face. He certainly wasn't at the club to play cards or drink tea.
“Good luck.”
He said in his heart, shaking his head and meticulously recording Mr. Lawrence’s attire for the day to prove the authenticity of his report.