Chapter 454 – Pointing to the Gods
Chapter 454 – Pointing to the Deities
The whirlwind wrapped itself in pale dust and smoke and faded into Duncan’s field of vision.
Agatha was gone.
“I always felt …… she’s changed a lot from before,” Vanna didn’t break the silence until the last wisps of gray wind had disappeared into the air, “especially those last words she said -never seemed like something a former ‘Gatekeeper’ would say.”
“Experience changes a person, especially what she has been through,” Duncan said lightly, “and on the other hand, she has taken on more than just the role of ‘Gatekeeper’ nowadays, which has destined her to make a definite change.”
Vanna was a bit curious, “You don’t seem worried?”
“Because she has not wavered – those who are enlightened are rather more determined,” Duncan said casually, “She is sensible, and not yet so far gone as to take any paranoid or even wrong paths because of the pressures of survival in the City-State, and her last few words may have been less than pious, but at least they were sober.”
Vanna didn’t respond for a moment, while Duncan turned his head and looked at the young Inquisitor if he had a deeper meaning, “It’s not really Agatha you’re worried about, is it?”
“…… My faith does not allow me to lie,” Vanna finally sighed softly after a brief silence, “Yes, I am worried about my own state, and in Agatha I see the same faltering faith, words and actions of my apostasy in myself.”
Duncan didn’t say anything, just waited quietly for the other woman to continue.
“…… There was a time when I thought that I only needed to maintain a strong faith and an unflinching fighting spirit to solve all problems head on, that the gods had set the order in which the world operated, and that we were like cogs that could operate without fear within the framework, but the truth is… …order is as fragile as foam in the sea, faith and fighting spirit alone will not save our city-state, and our long-constructed perceptions of the world are being put to the test ……
“The ‘sun’ is not eternal, the ‘boiling gold’ that sustains modern civilization may be the product of ancient gods, the gods do not always protect the city-states, and under the deep sea is an unknown darkness that no religious classic can describe or explain! –Your appearance has even overturned my understanding of subspace over the past twenty years.”
“That last one, I suggest you remain reserved – you’re right about a few of the others,” Duncan shook his head, speaking nonchalantly, “Humanity’s perception of the world is inherently one-sided, and from the very beginning, we shouldn’t think that there exists a simple and eternal set of ‘logic’ that can crudely explain everything in the world, perhaps this simple and eternal ‘truth’ itself exists, but it is by no means something that can be understood by humans at this stage of their lives, then on that basis the ‘worldview being subverted’ should have been an essential part of the advancement of civilization.”
Listening to Duncan’s words, Vanna subconsciously fell into thought, her expression gradually became complex, and after a moment she spoke as if talking to herself, “And where are the Gods?”
“I don’t know, because I haven’t dealt with Him directly, maybe seen them from afar, but that’s not enough for me to make a conclusion about Him,” Duncan spoke frankly, “But I recognize two things, first, the Four Gods do exist in this world, at least as an objective individual exists, and second …… He has sheltered and guided the civilized world to some degree throughout the time so far.”
The look on Vanna’s face was a bit stunned for a moment, because in her life of more than twenty years so far, this was the first time she had heard someone evaluating the Four Gods in such a way that did not contain any goodness, evil, or reverence, as if evaluating an object-an evaluation that was devoid of any reverence, and could be described as arrogant, and yet, when an existence that had returned from subspace said them out loud Yet when a being who had returned from subspace spoke them, all Vanna could feel was ……
The words were cold and precise, like some kind of ruler for measuring the world.
Just then, Duncan’s voice that spoke again interrupted Vanna’s thoughts, “Vanna, don’t go thinking about it too much, you still believe in Gemona now, don’t you?”
“Yes, my faith is as one.” Vanna said immediately.
“That’s right, your faith is as one, and Agatha still believes in Bartok as well – and your respective gods have not turned their backs on you because of the change in your thoughts, and the blessings remain the same, which means that your thinking at this moment has not departed from Him either,” Duncan said earnestly said, “Thinking does not necessarily lead to heresy, as does questioning, and it is the true devotee who chooses to believe even after thinking and questioning-
“Maintaining a proper and healthy faith, while maintaining a proper and healthy skepticism, trying to understand the world, accepting that it isn’t what you thought it was, accepting the narrowness and bias in your perceptions, accepting that you wavered – and let’s be honest, Gemona was okay with you praying to Him on the Lost Country, what’s not okay with you? What can’t you accept?”
Vanna was startled, then but subconsciously raised her head in the direction of the Upper City, to the great hallowed hall of silence at the highest point of the Frost.
Agatha must have returned to the sanctuary via the Grey Wind by now – would she return to her prayer room and continue to contemplate her partnership with the Subspace Shadows in front of Bartok’s icon? Will she return to her prayer room and continue to contemplate her partnership with the Subspace Shadow in front of Bartok’s icon? Would she continue to think about the future of the city-state and conclude that “anything that prevents survival is heresy, but everything else is permissible”?
After a long time, she withdrew her gaze into the distance and muttered, “Doesn’t the Lord of …… care?”
“I don’t know, but if it were me, I wouldn’t care,” Duncan shrugged, “and from all indications, the God of Death and the Goddess of Storms really don’t care either – they care about something else, probably. ”
Vanna was lost in thought, while Maurice, who never spoke a word, couldn’t help but sigh softly, “I didn’t realize that you thought so deeply in the realm of faith …… I thought you weren’t interested in such things.”
“How could it be, as long as it is a theory that tries to explain this world, I have always been interested,” Duncan’s expression was very serious, “For example, right now, I’m about to go and learn about another kind of ‘faith’ that tries to explain this world. ”
Seeing the blank looks on Vanna and Maurice’s faces (except for Alice, who just never got it), Duncan smiled, “There’s no need to worry about what’s going on in the City-State for now, it’s almost time to check out that ‘Book of Blasphemy’ next.”
……
Shirley fell asleep – on the fourth oral math problem card.
The sound of chains swaying slightly resounded in the cabin, and Dog carefully held the black chain next to him with one paw, while standing up his upper body and draping the blanket over Shirley with his mouth, and casually picking at the oral math problem cards on the table a few times with the other paw to keep them from getting wet from Shirley’s drool.
As he gathered them up, Dog’s gaze swept over the cards filled with simple addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division, and his movements paused slightly, “…… Surprisingly, most of them are still correct?”
It muttered in a surprised whisper, and subconsciously twisted its head around, but it was just in time to see Shirley adjusting her position on her back again in her sleep, vaguely mumbling some kind of dream words, and a thin line of shiny drool dripping from the corner of her mouth. “…… Let’s just say it’s seriously done.”
Dog shook its head and plopped down again, then it settled its mind as if it was rather hesitant and weighed its options before stretching out its paw and picking a book over from the pile of books on the floor that belonged to it.
The cover of the book was plain and unimpressive, nothing more than a textbook that could be purchased from any city-state, in paperback, with the words Algebraic Calculations printed on it.
Dog hung his head, shimmering light flickering in the holes of his bloodshot red eyes as he gazed silently at the book in front of his paws for a long time before slowly flipping open its cover.
But immediately afterward, it snapped its head back up and darted a quick glance around the room.
Everything was normal on the shelves where the books were stacked, there was peace in the shadowy corners of the room, sunlight was pouring in through the windows, and the sound of the ocean waves was soft and soothing from outside.
“…… Okay, environment is secure, eliminating distractions, book type is still math …… Try again …… Third test. ”
Dog grunted, finally lowered his head and began to read the contents of the book with full attention.
Understanding those formulas, memorizing those symbols, deducing those numbers, trying to understand the workings of the world from the knowledge and wisdom of those who came before him.
It was difficult at first, as there were always distractions and care for his surroundings that would interfere with the thought process, but soon enough, Dog’s thoughts settled down – as always, math always helped him to focus and get lost in thought.
Symbols and numbers were combined in his mind, the knowledge of the world gradually filled his mind, and Dog was fully absorbed in his studies; gradually, he felt as if he had a ……
study companion.
Someone who was reading with it;
Someone was thinking with it;
There existed curiously observing the place, glimpses that carried no good or evil.
Dog cocked his head.
Beneath the white pages of the book, in the gaps between the words, in the city of knowledge outlined by symbols and lines, a red source of light was surrounded by a myriad of flickering, matrix-like points of light that watched it as if it were eyes.
Dog froze.
It too gazed at the red light.
It couldn’t help but gaze at the red light.
It even felt itself leaning forward – in active proximity to that flickering matrix of light.
Yet the sensation only appeared for a moment.
In the next second, a force from the symbiotic chains pulled it back, freeing it from the illusion of being attracted.
“Crap ……”
Dog immediately let out a cry of surprise, waking up from the brief illusion, and in the next second, it instinctively looked at the pitch-black chain around its neck.
At the last moment, it was the power coming from this chain that pulled it back – apparently, it was Sherry who pulled.
Yet the chain still fell loosely to the ground, not taut in the least.
At the other end of the chain was Shirley, who was still lying on the table in a deep sleep.
She didn’t wake up at all.
(End of chapter)