"I suppose no one here can afford it?" Miss Magic chuckled, though her tone resembled that of a cannibal old witch.
"Its function is very inconspicuous, its origin is not entirely legitimate, and I need some cash recently..."
"This is a legal Gathering; we can't sell stolen goods." Mr. Crane immediately intervened.
"No, please listen to me; this is not stolen goods, it just comes from an unknown source... The Orthodox Church has recorded it, B-01-5-92939."
"If I recall correctly, 5 means it can be used normally under any circumstances and is not dangerous," Jasper said, and Mr. Wood nodded.
"Yes, its name is [Hunter's Fruit Plate]. As long as you inject a small amount of spirit, you can get three different fruits every day. Of course, they are ordinary fruits."
The other five people fell silent.
"You can buy it with cash. This is an [Extraordinary] item regardless..."
In the end, even he couldn't speak anymore.
The object in Jasper's eyes was blue, a new color he had never seen before. He was somewhat interested, but worried that his savings weren't sufficient.
"Ten pounds. Its origin is unknown," Miss Magic declared.
"Can you please add more?" Mr. Wood tentatively asked, and Miss Magic shrugged.
"Eleven pounds."
Jasper spoke. Though the price seemed somewhat directed at Miss Magic, she remained indifferent and said nothing.
In the end, Jasper spent half of his savings to acquire an [Extraordinary] item, despite its unknown origin and seemingly useless functions...
Due to the giant octopus haunting Lutetia City at night and the incident with A-01-2-0198, the next party was postponed to two weeks later, and the password was also set in the newspaper.
Following the drawing of lots, Jasper was the second to depart. He had initially considered asking Mr. Crane about other gathering but deemed it imprudent, so he abandoned the idea.
After wandering through the Montrose Quater alleys for half an hour, Jasper confidently returned to his bedroom. The door was still locked—good.
Tonight's gathering provided an opportunity to gather more secret information. Although seemingly futile now, coming from the 21st century, Jasper understood the importance of information.
'And it's fun, isn't it?'
Rather than immediately going to sleep, he retrieved the somewhat dirty wooden plate from his belongings, adorned with common decorative patterns.
With a bit of input, under the moonlight, an unripe green apple, a hazelnut, and an enticing red cherry appeared on the plate.
"Are hazelnuts considered a fruit?" He pondered with a frown, then placed the cherry in his mouth; it tasted rather good.
Sometimes, Jasper wondered if, despite being a transmigrater, he might not be the so-called protagonist, as life returned to calm in the following week, contrary to his expectations of encountering abnormalities one after another.
"But it's not bad."
Jasper, sprawled in front of the counter while transcribing the tadpole text from the photo, unexpectedly uttered these words, startling Mr. Montfort and nearly causing him to drop the porcelain in his hands.
Mr. Montfort was still dealing with matters concerning the publisher. Initially relying on the church's connections seemed promising, but they soon realized that even publishing regular books required a so-called book batch number—a Kingdom-issued official qualification for book publishing, and unfortunately, the church had run out of them.
Montfort located a professional printer affiliated with the church who admired Jasper' s fairy tale collection. If Jasper was willing to wait until the last quarter of the year for the next batch of batch numbers, the gentleman was eager to be the first to print and publish Jasper's book. However, feeling that waiting so long was unnecessary, Montfort explored other options through the church's partners, a process that also took some time.
Jasper's studies had finally shifted from theory to practice, encompassing not only antiques but also occultism.
One day, under Mr. Montfort's watchful eye, Jasper independently conducted a "prayer ceremony" in the warehouse behind the antique store. True to its name, the ceremony aimed to invoke the attention of the [Mastermind], allowing a brief period of divine observation.
Due to his identity, Jasper resisted this practice. However, lacking a reasonable way to refuse, he reluctantly etched the Mastermind's holy symbol onto the ground with the remaining ritual chalk. Kneeling on the holy symbol with one knee, he beseeched the lady's attention, offering a small piece of silver as a symbolic sacrifice.
The "silver" was merely a token offering, symbolic in nature. According to Montfort, catching the gods' attention came at a cost, but the benevolent gods were lenient, as long as one refrained from presenting rotten food or garbage.
Surprisingly, the process unfolded smoothly. As Jasper lowered his head, completing the final recitation, he immediately sensed a gentle, substantial gaze, laden with pressure, looking down at him from above.
Although the gaze was majestic, Jasper found himself unable to raise his head. However, it held a kindness and breadth that left him stunned even after the gaze had vanished, prompting him to stand up belatedly.
For the first time, he realized that true gods, in the traditional sense, existed in this world. They weren't merely immensely powerful humans but higher beings fundamentally distinct from ordinary mortals.
"She didn't notice anything amiss with me and I got away with it?"
Praying to one's own god is a simple ritual, yet for believers in the true God, it holds extraordinary significance.
On one hand, through such rituals, they could present sacrifices to the gods, like the small piece of silver that vanished post-ceremony. Gaining the gods' favor through sacrifices wasn't merely about improving worldly power; it was the most basic benefit. In unique cases, gods might directly bestow [Abilities], [Gifts], and even spirits.
On the other hand, being observed by God was a unique form of baptism. Curses or odd occurrences, however intricate, would be obliterated in the eyes of the Higher Being. Of course, for the latter purpose, substantial sacrifices were advisable. Relying solely on a small piece of metal to seek aid from a great being was considered blasphemous, and devout believers refrained from such practices.
Though Jasper had independently performed a ceremony to acquire abilities, Montfort insisted on this method as proof of initiation.
"It's an entry test, a tradition upheld since ancient times. We should stick to our roots."
How were believers in false gods tested? Did they pray to false gods? Were false gods also enigmatic and incomprehensible beings?
Jasper posed the question but received only a meaningful glance from Montfort.
He had attempted to discern the disparity between true gods and false gods through libraries and other means, even exploring the significance of months corresponding to true gods. Yet, theological books uniformly skirted these topics.
Jasper persisted, patiently awaiting his promotion to a level 1 Gifter. At that point, he would gain the authority to peruse the church's coveted materials. Presently, he couldn't access the church's [Mystery] records, but after reaching level one, he'd unlock sections classified as "04" and below in the danger number.
The most unexpected event in the new week occurred when Montfort abruptly instructed Jasper to attend church as an ordinary believer at noon on Wednesday. The weather that day was exceptionally somber, with pollutants from the factory casting a yellow hue across the sky. Captain Ole wordlessly guided him through a side door, and they boarded a carriage bound for Lutetia No. 5 Public Hospital, a place rumored to be haunted.
Despite its "public" designation, accessing medical care here required a heavier purse than Jasper possessed.
The structures within the hospital grounds resembled more of a noble villa, with even the steam pipes intricately concealed within the walls.
Swiftly, they entered a room on the first floor's corner. A man, donning leather shoes and feigning interest in a newspaper, acknowledged them with a nod and opened the door.
Upon stepping inside, an overpowering stench nearly bowled Jasper over.