The first to appear before Jenkins was Mr. Donas Yassen, the "Left Hand of the Sanctuary" from the Church of the Sage. He was supposed to have returned to Bel Diran imdiately after relaying the Holy See's instructions regarding the King Souls to Saint Williatte. But shortly after, Jenkins announced his intention to rge the World Tree seeds. The Church believed this could not only form the [World Tree Seedling] but also awaken the [Tree Soul]. Therefore, they had Mr. Yassen stay behind temporarily to confirm the outco before returning.
Mr. Yassen wasn't a local and wasn't very familiar with Nolan, but he recognized the iconic unicorn. He cleared his throat and spoke in a very formal tone:
"Believer of Lies, good morning. If I recall correctly, you gave us no prior notice that you wished to negotiate with us today."
"This isn't about negotiations. We've found so very important information, and after so discussion, we felt it was necessary to share it with you."
Jenkins replied with equal gravity, then emphasized again:
"Extrely important information."
As it happened, the Church was holding a eting in the Evergreen Forest that day, so all the key figures were present. Mr. Yassen realized the Believer of Lies must be bringing significant news and imdiately relayed his words verbatim to the ongoing conference.
The decision-makers were all gathered together, so things moved with remarkable efficiency. Just eighteen minutes after Jenkins landed, he was granted entry into the forest and finally t the representatives of the various churches in a clearing beneath the giant tree.
The clearing had been temporarily set up as the main conference area. With the canopy shielding them from the sun, a simple round table and so benches were all they needed. When they saw the unfamiliar man following Mr. Yassen into the clearing with the unicorn, everyone rose to their feet.
Jenkins glanced up at the inverted Saint's Shadow hanging beneath the tree, then patted his little beast:
"Go play over there."
The creature obediently nuzzled the back of Jenkins's hand before trotting off toward the part of the woods where the fawns were hiding.
"It seems I've interrupted an important eting. I hope you don't mind."
"Just say what you have to say, Believer of Lies. You've likely learned of the world's dangerous new developnts through your own channels. Everyone's ti is precious right now, so let's not waste any of it."
Most of the attendees were ordinary people, but upon hearing of the Believer of Lies's arrival, the demigods stationed in the Evergreen Forest had also gathered. The speaker was the old Gravedigger from the Church of Death and End, soone Jenkins was acquainted with.
"We've uncovered so critical information—extrely critical information—that we need to share with you. At the sa ti, I'd like to trade for a few items and also settle the matter of that hamr."
He nodded toward the mbers of the Church of Creation and Machinery. Saint Grev returned the gesture. The Church of Creation and Machinery was grateful to the Believer of Lies for retrieving the [Wrath of the Thunder God] from the Gear Artisans' Association.
"What do you want?"
Lady Osen of the Traveler's Church asked. Besides Mr. Yassen, who had guided Jenkins here, she was the one standing closest to him.
"We can discuss that in a mont. As a show of good faith, I'd like to share my intelligence first. The thing beneath our feet..."
He stamped his foot. Seeing this, the ordinary people present imdiately turned and departed in another direction. This was not sothing they were ant to hear.
"The thing beneath our feet is an ancient intelligent machine, an auxiliary computational device created by the humans of a bygone epoch. It possesses thought, but no soul. I hope you understand what I an. We call it the 'Difference Engine'."
Jenkins would never call it by a na like "Great Wisdom." That would just sound foolish.
He then proceeded to explain the machine's basic principles in detail, describing how it had siphoned the power of civilization ti and again through countless unsealings. He spoke of the apocalypse of the 18th Epoch, of the "Land of Steel," of the thick fog blanketing the world, and finally, of the so-called "Reverser of Fate" ritual—a ceremony to beco a Beast of Calamity, draw power from sin, and bring about the end of days.
He stated frankly that he hoped the Church would help investigate what exactly this "Reverser of Fate" was, adding that the Believers of Lies were eager to share all subsequent intelligence.
The Church was stunned by the information the Believer of Lies had suddenly dropped on them, especially his knowledge of the machine he called the "Difference Engine," which far surpassed their own. They agreed to his request. They now shared a common enemy, one whose current power already exceeded the combined strength of the Orthodox Churches and the Believers of Lies.
No one knew what the Reverser of Fate ritual was, but the Difference Engine's other sches—the gear-like tendrils spreading underground, the chanized Body Curse spreading across the surface, and the great forest fire in the south orchestrated by the Tree House—were all traceable. This was enough to prove that the information from the Believer of Lies was, at the very least, mostly true.
Compounded by the other ons of the apocalypse, the destruction wrought by these terrible events already threatened the entire world. Add to that the rampaging Cursed Items that were likely unrelated to the Difference Engine, the ancient ruins erging from the earth, and the various horrific incidents that would never occur in peaceti—it was all more than enough to prove that the end was not far off.
It certainly wouldn't be ten years from now. It was highly probable to happen within five years, possibly even three. An apocalypse within the year wasn't entirely out of the question.
One only had to look up at the thin, gray mist lingering above the forest to understand what kind of era this was.
The Church expressed its gratitude to the Believer of Lies for sharing the information and thus had no objection to him setting a few conditions. Jenkins's first request was, of course, for the wrench said to be capable of repairing any machine. As it happened, both tis that wrench had co into the Church's possession, he had been the one to acquire it.
The Church was naturally curious about why the Believer of Lies wanted the wrench, but the Church of the Sage, which currently held it, imdiately agreed to hand it over. Thus, Jenkins's first condition was t without any trouble.
Requesting the Sin Coins, however, was not so easy. Whether it was at the behest of the Lords and Righteous Gods, the Orthodox Churches not only remained ignorant of the "obvious" true purpose of the Sin Coins but also couldn't produce a single one.
Jenkins had once heard Papa Oliver talk about Sin Coins. The Church considered them to be profane objects. Although they had collected so over the years, the coins were often consud as ritual components.
Nearly any ritual to summon a Cursed Item could use Sin Coins as a substitute for the live sacrifices the Church would never use. The Church sotis needed to summon Cursed Items, and they were more than happy to expend the otherwise indestructible Sin Coins in the process.
In any case, Jenkins was astonished to find that the Church truly couldn't produce a single coin, and they weren't lying.
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