Chapter 377: The Holy City (III) – The Leader

Father Laki maintained a flawless smile, explaining the rules in a timely, theatrical tone: “The Great Holy Lord brings us light and life. We faithfully believe in Him and cannot allow wicked Heretics to defile His glory.

“However, the Holy Lord has always been merciful and benevolent. Although He wishes for the Heretics to receive their due punishment, He does not wish for the innocent to be implicated. The authority of judgment will be delegated to you all. Every morning, I will organize a Verdict session for you.

“Each of you possesses the right to one vote, and all decisions must be made through voting. You must select the true Heretic and execute him, thus appeasing the Lord’s wrath and allowing Him to rest peacefully.”

The instance mechanism was now clear: players could not use items or force to kill others. To kill another player, they had to abide by the instance’s own game rules: “Heretics stab Believers at night, and Heretics are executed during the day.”

This set of rules had many similarities to the Werewolf game on the market, where the “Heretic” card was the “Wolf” in Werewolf.

The “Heretics” could kill the “Believers,” and the “Believers” could execute the “Heretics” through the verdict. If the verdict was correct, they won; if it was wrong, it would lead to a reduction in the number of “Believers.”

However, unlike Werewolf, this game had no “God Card” targeting the “Wolf,” which seemed highly disadvantageous to the “Believers.”

Asakura Yuko squinted slightly, looking at the small 【Heretic】 card that had appeared below the 【Forbidden Scholar】 card in the upper right corner of her vision.

The Eerie Game couldn’t create such an obvious imbalance. There must be some hidden mechanism to weaken the Heretic faction. Could it be related to the Holy Lord?

Even in previous instances that had God-level NPCs, they mostly stayed behind the scenes. Why, unlike this instance, was the God-level NPC immediately sharing a room with the players?

Asakura Yuko looked once more at Qi Si, who was wrapped in a black robe on the main seat.

The young man’s hands were placed flat on the table. The shadow cast by his hood covered most of his face. His scarlet eyes stared straight ahead, reflecting no one’s image. At first glance, he looked exactly like a replica of the statue behind him—self-existent, eternal, heartless, and emotionless.

It was just unknown—how much humanity remained in Him, who was once born a man but was now a god? And could He be simply communicated with or negotiated with?

Father Laki took a Cross Pendant from his robe, held it high in the air, and continued, “To give you sufficient courage, one among you will become the 【Son of God】, protected by the Lord. He cannot be harmed by Heretics, and any Heretic he identifies will be executed.

“O pious Believers, I hope you can quickly determine the candidate for the Son of God, find all the Heretics, and fulfill the Lord’s command.”

Qi Si silently noted the setting of the 【Son of God】. With a completely expressionless face and an unmoving body, he dutifully played the role of a statue of a god who did not participate in the game.

This instance had given him a 【Heretic】 identity card, incorporating him, a deity, into the faction game. The malice was too obvious; it was clearly intended for him to die via the rule-based “execution of Heretics” mechanism.

Unfortunately, first, he could withdraw at any time using his authority, and second, the players probably wouldn’t think he could be a target for voting. Thus, it really seemed like he was just here for a “quick visit.”

Asakura Yuko pondered for a moment and asked, “How is the Son of God chosen? Is he absolutely immortal? Once the Son of God is determined, will the selection never change?”

Father Laki looked at her kindly and replied, “You can select the person you approve of to become the Son of God through a vote. If you fail to make a decision within the limited time, the Lord will exercise the right on your behalf.”

Simply put, the latter half of the sentence meant random selection.

Only those anxious newcomers would like the method of leaving everything to fate. The veteran players present essentially agreed that it was better to actively choose the so-called “Son of God.”

Father Laki paused and added, “No existence in this world is absolutely immortal. After the Son of God dies, a new Son of God will be chosen.”

Due to her professional habit as a journalist of getting to the bottom of things, Asakura Yuko actually wanted to follow up with the question, “Is it possible for a Heretic to become the Son of God?”

But rather than needlessly inviting suspicion after asking, it was better to speak less.

Anyway, judging from the current situation, the players would either reach a consensus and abandon the faction mission, or rely on their own abilities—and she didn’t believe she would be at a disadvantage in a game of intellectual maneuvering.

The blond Caucasian who called himself “William” immediately asked, “Father, can you tell us under what circumstances the Son of God might die?”

Father Laki shook his head: “Acquiring knowledge requires trial and error by pioneers. You will know after the deceased appears.”

“Excuse me, I have one more question. You previously said that all of us must select the Heretic through a verdict, and then you said the Son of God would identify the Heretic. If the Son of God’s judgment differs from everyone else’s, whose decision takes precedence?”

Father Laki replied, “The Son of God has the right to decide who the Heretic is. The power of the verdict rests with the Son of God.”

William had no further questions and remained silent, pursing his lips.

It seemed that voting was merely a formality. The Son of God wielded immense power, virtually holding the players’ power of life and death, though the cost of this power was unknown.

Could the setup be that “everyone is a Heretic,” and the sole “Son of God” becomes the target of public criticism?

Asakura Yuko pondered and then asked, “How many Heretics are there among the twelve of us?”

Father Laki smiled and said, “My child, I do not know.”

“Then what characteristics do Heretics have? How are we supposed to determine who is a Heretic?”

Father Laki answered, “Heretics can walk in the dark.”

The players still had many questions, but Father Laki waved his hand, signaling everyone to be quiet.

Maintaining his statuesque smile, he said mildly, “Children, you may walk around the city. What you see and hear will be the Lord’s answer to you. Please remember to return here before dark; there will be danger at night.”

He turned and left, leaving the players looking at each other.

The pages of the history book clearly stated, 【There is danger in the dark, and the Temple is not safe】. Would hiding in the Temple at night really be effective?

Or, since Heretics can walk at night, will returning to the Temple before dark become evidence used to distinguish the Heretics?

William broke the silence loudly: “Ladies and gentlemen, it seems the primary task for the first day is to explore the Holy City and gather clues. Let’s first establish a process and determine the rules for cooperation—I assume no one objects to cooperating? Oh, of course, if you have any questions, you can raise them now.”

The muscular Black man objected upon hearing this: “I don’t think that’s a good idea. Isn’t this an adversarial instance? We don’t even know who our friends and enemies are, so how can we cooperate safely?”

“That’s why we need to discuss the process and determine the rules,” the short-haired girl from the Cherry Prefecture said crossly. “Can’t you all see? Although the factions are hostile, the main mission is the same: ‘Investigate the truth behind the destruction of the Holy City.’

“The main mission is more important than the faction mission, and completing it together is more efficient. Moreover, once the main mission is completed, the instance is cleared. What does it matter whether the faction mission is completed or whether the evaluation rank is high or low?”

The tall woman named “Julie Margaret” chimed in: “That’s right. All of us only know our own faction. We can’t guarantee that rash action won’t harm players in the same faction. Cooperating to solve the main mission sooner is the right thing to do.”

“Who said that?” Fran Parker from Crystal County sneered. “How could anyone who dares to match into an instance at this time be content with a NE clearance? If even one person harbors ulterior motives, everyone else will be played for fools!”

After speaking, he glanced sideways at Fu Jue, his meaning unclear.

“That’s right, we can’t guarantee that no one will secretly stab us in the back during cooperation. Once a murder occurs, everyone will treat everyone else as an enemy, entering a stage of indiscriminate free-for-all, ensuring only they survive…”

The speaker was a middle-aged man named “Giles Hunter,” who had a common face and a calm voice: “I suggest that among the twelve of us, we first establish a leader to preside over the situation and ensure fairness by setting appropriate rules.”

In a voting game with an even number of participants, one vote per person could easily lead to a tie, adding unnecessary trouble. To streamline the process, it was absolutely necessary to appoint a leader position that could cast the decisive vote.

“Who will be the leader?” the mixed-race youth retorted with a sneer. “Will you? What’s your rank?”

“Who am I to lead?” The middle-aged man wasn’t angry; instead, he looked at Fu Jue. “I suggest Fu Jue lead us. I don’t think anyone would object, right? Firstly, he is the highest-ranked and most prestigious player among us. Secondly, his character is universally recognized, and we all trust him to be fair and just.”

The representatives of the Eerie Investigation Bureau initially didn’t react. These people had always been defiant towards Fu Jue, so why was someone suddenly defecting and rushing to accept Fu Jue’s leadership?

But in just a second, they realized: the leader was an exposed role, while the Heretic was a hidden role.

Whoever became the leader was placed under public scrutiny, especially since it was the famous Fu Jue. Any ambitious Heretic would want to try and see if they could kill him.

Since this instance prevented mutual attacks outside the game rules, all weapon-type items were effectively restricted. Even if Fu Jue had extensive experience, having his items restricted made it difficult to cook without rice; he might actually die here.

Immediately, the representatives echoed their agreement.

“If Fu Jue is leading us, I have no objection.”

“With Fu Jue leading the team, our main mission is secured!”

“I only respect Fu Jue. If he leads the team, I am willing to disclose all the clues I gather!”

This was “killing with praise”—seemingly respectful, but merely an act of moral coercion.

Fu Jue’s expression was unreadable. He glanced around at everyone and said calmly, “I object. It is known that there are two factions among the players. My position belongs to one of these factions, and I 100% cannot represent the interests of everyone.

“When my decisions conflict with your opinions, a chain of suspicion will form, which is unavoidable even among players in the same faction. The resulting internal friction will cause unnecessary waste.

“To summarize, I propose that one more leader be chosen. The probability of two leaders belonging to the same faction drops to one-half, which is within a controllable range.”

After saying these words, Fu Jue fell silent, calmly watching the players, as if he knew they would not refuse.

The tall woman smiled and said, “Let’s establish three leaders. That way, the probability of the leaders being in the same faction drops to one-quarter.”

She paused, looking around at everyone: “You must have seen the map. There are three locations that need exploring, so we can conveniently divide into three teams. All decisions will be confirmed by voting, with leaders having a weight of two votes and everyone else having one vote. This way, the total number of votes will be odd, so we won’t have to worry about ties.”

“That sounds like a good idea.” William nodded slightly and said with a wry smile, “I think I can serve as one of the leaders. I’m ranked 127 on the board and have ten years of game experience, so I should be a relatively suitable choice.”

Surviving ten years in the Eerie Game, even if his ranking wasn’t as dazzling as Fu Jue’s, was enough to command respect. Furthermore, he wasn’t considered too strong among this group of players, so he wouldn’t necessarily be targeted first by the Heretics, giving him an advantage over Fu Jue.

Therefore, no one raised an objection.

“There’s still one leader position left. Who wants it?” the short-haired girl asked, frowning.

The leader position was a hot potato, like a beam of flashlight in the dangerous night, or a lone target standing in an open square.

In this instance, murder relied purely on some mechanism; it was illogical and unavoidable.

Given the limited clues, if someone absolutely had to be killed, the Heretics would definitely pick a “lucky” person from the leader positions.

“I recommend Asakura Yuko,” Fu Jue said. His gaze under his Gold-Rimmed Glasses swept over Qi Si, then shifted to Asakura Yuko at the end of the long table, the meaning hard to discern.

“First, she entered the Eerie Game relatively late and belongs to the Listening Wind Guild. She has no grudges with any of us, making it less likely she’d interfere with the situation out of self-interest. Second, she is the lowest ranked, posing no threat to most of us, and consequently has a lower chance of being targeted due to her leader status. Third, I analyzed her data; her intelligence and wisdom are above the average level among the twelve of us.”

Although these words were ostensibly about Asakura Yuko, Qi Si sensed a different implication from the brief glance that had just occurred.

The three reasons for recommending Asakura Yuko as a leader also applied to him. It seemed that for a fleeting moment, Fu Jue had intended to recommend him.

Had he discovered that Qi Si was also a player and could be voted for? Or was he probing his current state?

Qi Si speculated with interest, continuing… to remain expressionless.

Asakura Yuko, sitting in the corner, was not surprised to be suddenly called upon. As the holder of the 【Forbidden Scholar】 identity card, once her identity was recognized, she was destined not to maintain a low profile.

She also saw the malice some people held toward Fu Jue and knew that Fu Jue’s action was intended to muddy the waters and draw more people into the game.

“Everything is yet to be settled, yet they use endless internal conflicts to dissolve the group’s strength. Hoping that the majority of humans possess a big-picture view is ultimately a pipe dream.”

She made a judgment in her heart, and said with narrowed eyes, “Since God Fu places such high hopes on me, I must comply. However, let me state beforehand that I am an office worker. I might be good at analyzing clues, but I’m useless in other areas. I hope you don’t have high expectations of me.”

As a Heretic, her risk of serving as a leader was slightly lower than others, unless the other Heretics were foolish enough to stab her.

Simply put, assuming there are three Heretics in total, without knowing each other’s identities, Believers would face three sources of death threat, while Heretics would only face two—one wouldn’t stab oneself.

William watched Asakura Yuko and smiled, “We can’t attack each other in this instance, so all we can do is analyze clues. Let’s settle this and not waste too much time. Didn’t we say we need to explore the Holy City before dark?”

Asakura Yuko hummed and slightly raised her hand: “I have no objection.”

The allocation of positions was thus settled.

Fu Jue looked around at everyone and said in an even tone, “Based on calculations combining data from past instance clue distributions, it is preliminarily determined that there are six locations to explore: the four districts (East, South, West, North), the Cemetery, and the Temple Square. Two people per location is appropriate. Please state your exploration preferences.”