Chapter 30 : The Encyclopedia of Gods

A whole day went by instantly. Kieran trained, with other people trying to follow him and copy his technique. He paid no attention to them and continued on training. There was no point in trying to hide his technique since it was the basics. Many people tried talking to him as well, but at that point he couldn’t hear them. He didn’t even know they were there. He simply trained and trained until the bells rang, which meant it was dinner time. Dinner started at 6 pm, and the cafeteria was open until 8:30 pm. Though the kids from his village invited him to eat with them, he respectfully declined. If there was only one slot for each village, then there was no point in being friends with them. He would only feel bad about eliminating them. Additionally, he could use this chance to get to know children from other villages that he thought were interesting. He looked around the cafeteria, and spotted the child. He walked over, an empty table with no one else, besides the child.

“Hello, Alice. Would you mind-”

“Yes, I would mind.”

…

Kieran sat down across from her anyways, munching on his food.

“I thought I said no?”

“Ih mhhbfff mghf mfgh!”

“...what?”

Kieran swallowed, almost choking.

“I said,” he said with tears in his eyes, “I really don’t care!”

“Then what was the point of asking?”

“To be polite, of course.”

“You’re quite rude.”

“Sorry not sorry.”

…

Sigh..

“So, “Tudo Slayer,” what do you want from me?”

“Tudo Slayer?” he asked, still chowing down on the food. “Is that my new nickname?”

“Yeah, the others started calling you that.”

Kieran started laughing. “I’m no slayer,” he said. He got into a more serious tone. “If Alex was serious and didn’t mess around, I would have lost. 100%.” he said firmly.

…

“Hey, how come you aren’t with anyone? Where are the people from your village?”

“I was the only one.”

“.. I see.”

“Wait, doesn’t that mean you basically get accepted no matter what since it’s one slot per village?”

“No, I still need to pass a certain threshold, remember?”

“Oh right, I forgot,” he said smiling.

Though she didn’t ask, Kieran started talking about his past and about Ren and Mason, how they were amazing and talented warriors. Alice didn’t realize it, but she was having fun talking with Kieran. Kieran noticed that she was smiling and laughing, commenting on his stories, but for some reason, she still felt incredibly distant. Like she was putting up a barrier between them. He took note of it, but didn’t do anything about it just yet.

“Hey, so what weapon are you proficient at? I use the sword, but my brother Ren uses the spear.”

“... I use daggers. I’m not able to lift heavy weapons, and since I'm much more agile than the average male, it’s much easier for me.”

“I see. So, anyways, why were you in the library? You were already there reading a few books even though the Head Examiner had just dismissed us,” he asked.

“I’m with Group 2, so I’ve already passed everything.”

“So that’s what she meant by she’s the only one from her village..”

…

“Aren’t you going to ask me what I was reading?”

“Uhm.. well.. What were you reading?”

“I was reading about Sinners.”

Immediately, Kieran's eyes lit up.

“Why?”

“I just think their powers are very interesting.”

“.. What do you think of them?”

“Well, I think that they’re interesting,” she answered. “ I’ve actually read about it, and apparently, they choose the 7 Gods because they believe that their powers are “stronger.” Though, it’s really all just blasphemy and excuses.”

“The Angel? What’s that? I thought there were only 7 gods?”

“Well, it became the official religion a few centuries back, the Angel is the only “True God” left by God. According to the scriptures, the Angel was created in the image of God before any of the other Gods were created, and that the Angel was the closest being to God. Therefore, it is the representative left by God.”

“I didn’t learn about this… Are they two different factions? Sinners and the Knights?”

“I’m surprised you didn’t learn about this, this is the official religion of the empire.”

“I can’t say that my teacher was a Sinner.. I’ll just play dumb.”

“I never really paid attention in class, so I probably didn’t hear them teach it.”

…

“Are Sinners and Knights enemies..?”

“Yes, they are enemies. They are evil, blasphemous human beings. They kill people, commit terrible, unspeakable acts, and do human experiments and things like that. They also sometimes release monsters into public, congested areas and wreak havoc. All because they have incredibly strong powers. The Knights, on the other hand, are holy and righteous. They go around the world protecting lands and getting rid of Sinners.”

“I see.”

…

“So, let’s say someone is a Sinner, would they be arrested if they are found?”

“They would be executed on the spot.”

…

“What if that Sinner didn’t do anything?”

“It doesn’t matter. Under the eyes of the law, Sinners are traitors who wasted their power on evil. They could have been a follower of the Angel, but they worship the 7 gods instead.”

“Even if the Sinner was just living a peaceful life? Not disturbing anyone?”

“Yes, even if that were the case.”

“Earlier you said that they become Sinners because the 7 Gods can grant greater power, what does that mean?”

“No, I said they believe that the 7 Gods can grant power greater than the Angel. Did you really not pay attention in any classes?”

“...No.”

Sigh

She grabbed her try and motioned with her head for Kieran to follow. Kieran stood up as well with his tray and they walked together. They went to return their trays, then walked up to the Library. They walked into the library. There were some other kids there as well, reading stories and studying for the test.

“Sit here and wait for me,” she told Kieran.

Kieran sat down and watched the other kids. The whole place reminded him of a small library cafe he used to frequent back in his original world. It was a small, old cafe managed by an old couple. Though the books were old and the place was quite run down, the atmosphere was very relaxing and made it a good place to study.

A few minutes went by and Alice had returned with a few books.

“Just read these, you’ll get a better grasp of the topic,” she said as she slammed down the books.

“I’m going back to my room. If you need anything, look for me tomorrow.”

Just before she left the library, she stopped by the door before turning her head a bit to the side.

“Thanks… by the way. For talking to me. It was enjoyable.

“Your welcome I guess.”

He flipped the first book over.

It was a book titled the “Encyclopedia of Gods.”

He flipped over to the first chapter. “God.” It was the same as Mr. Anavos taught, the first God came down to the world and created it. There was not much in the chapter of the God. He flipped over to the second chapter. “The Angel.” This was the God that the Empire worshipped. He started to read. Time flew by as he read about the Angel, the powers it granted, basic things. According to the book, the Angel was created in God’s image and helped create the 7 Gods.

“Wait, I thought that was the Lady of the Night..?”

The 7 Gods were prideful and so attacked and blasphemed against God. The Angel was sent to defend against their attacks. The 7 Gods were unable to kill God and were pushed back by the Angel, but God was so disgusted by their actions that he forsake the world. The Angel was left in charge as the representative of God, and the 7 Gods continued to rain hell on the world. It was only after the Angel defeated them that the 7 Gods went into hiding. The Angel blessed the lands and its people, and gave them powers to protect themselves against evil.

“This isn’t the story I was told.”

He flipped to the next chapter. The 7 Gods. There was nothing on the Lady of the Night. The 7 Gods were the same as Mr. Anavos had taught him but the only difference being they were evil Gods. The Angel and the 7 Gods worked in the same way. They granted powers to their followers, and with experience, talent, and hard work, they could increase their powers. This was the Grade system, but for the Angel it was in “Ranks.” There were 6 different ranks for Knights:

Initiate,

Knight,

Graduator,

Inspector,

Grand Knight,

Holy Knight.

Each rank showed a different level of power and skill. To advance to the next rank, you must do good deeds across the lands, you must prove your honor and worth with actions. Then you must be recognized by at least 3 Knights in the next rank, and will be tested. In the case that there are not enough Knights at the next rank, the Church of the Angel must approve of the rank. At the Initiate level, you are granted the Authority of the Angel, the official name for its “power.” As time goes on, your experience and hard work will make your authority grow. Each person uses the Authority in a different way. For a few decades, there has been no Grand Knight since no one has proved themselves worthy.

“This is very interesting,” Kieran thought to himself. The grading system was basically the same as the Sinners but with extra steps, and instead of Infinite grades, there were only 6. For grading up as a Sinner, it was essentially the same. You just needed experience and the work as well, but you didn't need some sort of good deed count. He was not brought up in an environment where Knights were the good, or the Sinners were good. He was in a neutral environment of simply training. His teacher was a Sinner, yes, but he didn’t seem evil. Kieran didn’t know what to think of it, so he continued reading and paid no attention to it.

A few hours went by, and it was nearing 11 pm. He found a place to stash the books and walked back to his room. Everybody was already gone, nobody roamed the hall except for him. In the hallway, it was just him and his thoughts alone.