Gong—!
Gong—!
That was the sound of the church bell marking the arrival of midnight. Specifically, this bell served as a warning for people in the area to stay indoors.
I woke up upon hearing it.
My ears buzzed for a moment.
My eyes opened, and the ceiling of the room filled my vision. The room was simple, illuminated by candlelight, with an atmosphere of piercing emptiness.
I'm back…
I immediately understood.
I had returned to being Ralph Veir Hume.
I didn't get up right away to assess my surroundings. I already knew I had returned as Ralph Hume. Because of that, I chose instead to satisfy my curiosity. So, I closed my eyes.
In an instant, I fell back asleep.
I woke up amidst ruins.
Just as I expected, I really am back at the Miracle Temple…
I muttered softly when suddenly, a hoarse and hollow voice spoke behind me.
"Welcome, Master."
I smiled.
And then, I woke up again in my other body.
Sitting on a metal chair inside the Hume residence.
Without wasting time, I decided to return to my original body.
When I woke up again as Ralph Veir Hume, I made sure there were no complications in the plot's adjustment and integration. At least, so far.
I shifted my position.
Perhaps due to this soul transfer, my body felt heavy and hot upon waking. It was uncomfortable.
I glanced around and found no one in the room.
Even after I collapsed in the middle of my duties, no one was watching over me?
That's quite sad, isn't it?
Well, not that I wanted someone watching me. It just reinforced my initial suspicions about the church.
The bell signified midnight. That meant most priests had gone to sleep. Maybe only the patrolling ones were still awake.
This city was unique in that no one would be disturbed by such a loud bell. In fact, it might even lull them into a deeper sleep. It had become a habit, and for believers, the bell was interpreted as a form of protection.
Getting out of bed, I realized this was my own room.
They moved me here…
The problem was, even though the priests generally didn't care about me, I was still a priest. And suddenly collapsing was a condition that required a mandatory checkup.
It's not that I didn't have an excuse. I just didn't want to risk my ability being discovered.
The Sealer Path was not only excellent at creating specific boundaries but also highly proficient in detecting anomalies.
I sighed.
Shifting the curtain slightly, I could see the pitch-black darkness and the towering wall, blocking my view of the outside world. Now that the story integration was successful, my overflowing curiosity had faded.
Now, the next step remained.
That's right.
Story integration was only the first step. I needed to take the next step to obtain what I was searching for.
Sitting by the window, I closed my eyes, forming a mental map in my mind.
Right now, my focus was divided into three parts.
First, I had to gain the trust of the priests and show my sincerity as a devoted follower of Mystara. That way, they might loosen their surveillance on me.
Second, I could now transfer my soul into my other self, who was currently at the Hume residence.
I had conducted a brief investigation of my other self. Unlike my original physical body, my other body had an extremely faint life force. In some aspects, it resembled an inanimate object more than a living being—more precisely, a shadow.
This gave me many options for my second step. Should I immediately dive in and uncover the truth behind the church, empire, and divinity, or should I focus on secondary integration?
The unique thing about my other self was that the mystical power "Author" transferred along with it.
Normally, "Author" at the first level could only integrate one plot at a time.
However, that only applied when I was in my main body as Ralph. Outside of that—as the Shadow—I could use "Author" again to integrate another plot.
I didn't know if this was normal since Ralph and the Shadow were two separate bodies, or if it was something special due to the plot integration of "My other self, who possesses limitless potential."
The third point in my mental map was the Miracle Temple.
That place was a world formed from the true power of the Imaginer. Mystical and unreal. Yet, the changes it brought were real.
As a side scenario, I could start gathering information about the Imaginer Path.
I couldn't collect that information inside the church. That left me with only one option—I had to seek it out using my Shadow.
I would return to the Miracle Temple whenever I transferred back to my Shadow's body.
That was certain, based on my previous experiment.
After some thought, I began to draw specific conclusions.
Simply put, my two bodies would have different roles.
As Ralph, a prisoner-priest of the All-Seeing Eye church and a devotee of Mystara, I needed to approach the priests, gain enough trust to access information, or even get involved in solving church affairs.
I knew this part seemed unrealistic. After all, I was a prisoner. However, I still believed that the fact that I was imprisoned at the age of eight without committing a crime would be a strong enough reason for them to trust me.
On the other hand, as the Shadow, I needed to infiltrate the criminal underworld.
Not only would this allow me to see the world from two different perspectives, but it also increased the chances of obtaining information about the church, empire, and divinity's secrets.
Typically, the criminal underworld held crucial knowledge about the opposing side.
As I devised this plan, a name came to mind.
Raven's Nest…
That was the name of an organization infamous for the crimes they left behind. Additionally, their area of operation was the Empire.
Moreover, the fact that the church hadn't completely eradicated them yet made me think they were the perfect group to approach.
From the rumors I'd overheard from churchgoers and priests, Raven's Nest was also one of the sources of heretics who wielded the forbidden mystical power of the "Sinner" Path.
For some reason, I always had a bad feeling about that path.
That posed a slight problem.
If they were Sinner Path users, infiltrating them would be incredibly difficult. Those who followed that path typically lost their human nature, making them prone to cruelty and chaos.
Wait…
That might be the way in…
That's right.
I recalled the phrase:
"One must hunt in order to become a hunter."
Does that sound strange?
Yes.
Anyone hearing it for the first time would exclaim, "Isn't that obvious?"
Because it implies a fact that cannot be denied—a fundamental truth.
Why did I see their cruelty as an obstacle? Instead, I knew it was a gateway.
From the very beginning, I had never planned to be a hero or a protector of justice.
I always complained about the church's actions, but that didn't make me a good person.
Besides, being a good person was a limitation. As an Imaginer, I needed to think of something far greater.
I structured my mental map, leading to three conclusions:
Ralph Veir Hume would remain in the light.
The Shadow would move in the darkness.
And the Miracle Temple would be a secondary priority or a tool to achieve my ultimate goal.
All of this for one purpose.
To find the truth.