New Gods of North America

After the post-fight gathering, the partners from the detective agency were all in good spirits.

Inez's current condition wasn't suitable for 'unlimited combat'; without injections, she probably couldn't beat anyone, and with injections, she still might not be able to beat anyone.

Lena was busy cozying up to the other side and gathering information in private, so she didn't participate in the competition at all.

Wayne also planned to observe more and do less, coasting through the whole thing; his group didn't even make it to the second round.

The situation at the gathering was even more intense than in the arena.

While America doesn't have a direct tradition of 'pressuring people to drink,' an atmosphere of 'if you don't drink, you're a wimp' is not uncommon in Western saloons. In a land where duels are a common sight, many people are well-versed in similar taunting and egging-on tactics.

Those who had stood out in the friendly matches were almost all targeted at the gathering.

David Mills still had some face, but newcomers to the detective agency and focal points of the arena like Connor became the primary targets of both sides. Some people even started to become 'friends' or 'comrades'.

However, all the drunks who tried to compete in drinking eventually fell at the feet of Chef Parker. Aside from needing to go to the restroom from time to time, Parker was almost invincible when facing the test of alcohol.

The detective agency's partners and David Mills were considered the 'bosses' of both sides. Staying at the gathering for a long time without drinking would somewhat affect everyone's performance.

So, after drinking for a while, they all quietly slipped away, leaving only Lena to enthusiastically stir things up, taking the opportunity to avenge Willie and gather information by playing one side against the other.

Wayne, on the other hand, was resting with David Mills in the reception room. Wayne secretly suggested that David Mills shouldn't be too busy handling the daily affairs of the exorcism department and should appropriately cultivate a few assistants, selecting members who were more willing to cooperate with his work.

In Wayne's eyes, no matter the reason why David Mills went from being the state special operations team leader to the head of the exorcism department in Georgeburg, the cathedral probably didn't want to see Georgeburg's exorcism department controlled by someone who would only passively execute the local church's orders.

Tom Hagen had previously hinted that Wayne should 'communicate' more with David Mills.

Wayne thought he probably wasn't suggesting that he and David Mills learn how to solve cases from each other.

...

After the day off, Lane got to know a few more people in the church.

Although it might not be useful, it was still a roundabout way to gain some 'connections' that could be used to try and build relationships.

Members of the exorcism departments in the same archdiocese seemed to have all experienced similar 'intensive learning' or 'group training' sessions in batches.

So, after learning that Lane was going to the western mountains of Virginia to be the head of an office, some people would say things like, 'I know so-and-so, he's in the church in such-and-such town over there.'

Being a little more enthusiastic could at least provide a preliminary understanding of the situation, which might not be of great use in the future but could still be helpful.

After being able to have daily conversations in private, Wayne discovered that not all members of the exorcism department in the Virginia diocese were 'holy' domain extraordinaires—although it was said that all extraordinaires among the clergy were—some of them were so-called 'fallen' who had been rehabilitated.

However, the conditions for this 'rehabilitation' were very strict, requiring at least a few generations of local believers in their family history, and they themselves had to be believers, preferably having received 'baptism' in early childhood.

After becoming an extraordinaire, their rejection of 'holy' domain power usually couldn't be too great.

They or their families would often choose to seek help from the church as soon as they noticed something unusual about their bodies, essentially being in a state of 'full traceability.'

Then, only after the Holy Spirit Church recognized their piety and safety, and reliability, would they have the possibility of becoming a member of the church.

Wayne quietly assessed himself.

He realized that his obtaining Bishop Corleone's special permission might not be entirely because he was 'sensible' and 'capable'.

After resting for another day, the members of the office officially set off.

Driving several carriages and carrying luggage and equipment, they headed towards the steam train section that the detective agency had currently 'contracted'.

After finishing this preliminary work, Wayne planned to temporarily refocus his energy on studying.

None of the 'business people' that Sull Peter has currently named directly participated in the crime. At most, the detective agency has gained a few more informants with leverage.

The only good thing now is probably that the local newspapers shouldn't publish negative reviews about the detective agency indiscriminately.

Even if someone did publish them, Wayne would probably have a chance to figure out where the instructions came from.

Seth's investigation of Pastor Pasil has been in a state of 'mostly positive reviews' to this day. Even with the information Seth provided earlier, it's at most 'mixed reviews.'

Wayne thought that Pastor Pasil might be similar to Pastor Bazzini, both of whom were church managers with their own ideas. If they searched for each other's weaknesses and engaged in 'offense and defense' within the rules, they could probably get along.

Time flew by, and it was Wednesday again.

That day, Wayne finished his morning classes in religious sociology and the basics of economics. He was just about to go find the carriage that delivered lunch when the serious-faced 'dorm manager,' Macken Reef, came over.

Macken Reef looked like some of the townspeople in Blackstone Town at this time, reckless but with a few simple and straightforward qualities.

Wayne couldn't tell if he was coming to ask for help or to question him, but the information in his words was very clear:

'Washington' also suddenly disappeared this morning. Do you guys have any way to find out what the problem is?'

What's going on?!

Wayne thought for a moment, 'Did you drink the medicine at the college church again last week? Did you take out any extra potions?'

Macken Reef originally looked like he wanted to get angry.

After hearing Wayne's question, he became a little tongue-tied instead. 'I drank it... but this time we didn't take the potion out.'

After he finished speaking, he continued to explain:

'It's all 'Georgia's' fault, that bitch! She said that we've been drinking the potions from the college church for so long and nothing has happened, so the problem might not be with Pastor Pasil. Instead, the abnormalities appeared not long after we met you.

Furthermore, you guys made us drink a bunch of potions, but you still can't come up with a solution and just keep telling us to drink holy water. You don't seem to have been paying attention to Macken's matter during this time, so she initially convinced us last week not to trust you too much.

Everything was fine at first. Even 'Washington' was silent. Until this morning, 'Washington' suddenly felt an abnormality during class and left a last will for us to come find you... Okay, 'York,' it wasn't a last will, but 'Washington' did disappear like Macken.'

Wayne pondered for a while and gave a relatively formal reply:

'First of all, our detective agency has been following up on this matter. I've asked someone to find professionals to try to identify the potions that 'you' brought over earlier, but I haven't received the results yet.

Second, our detective agency also has its own affairs. You are responsible for assisting in the management of the dormitory, and you should have learned about my busy schedule during this time. In the absence of new circumstances, since you don't have a strong reaction to holy water, then drinking holy water might be a good way to alleviate the symptoms—I drink holy water myself often.

Third, if you want us to continue providing assistance, then I require you to trust and cooperate with us. At least believe that we have no malice towards Macken and that you cannot tell Pastor Pasil about our affairs.'

Macken Reef's expression changed rapidly a few times. One of the expressions looked almost like he wanted to curse.

However, that expression seemed to be quickly 'suppressed' by other personalities, and finally replaced by another, more communicative personality:

'I understand. During this time, I will try my best to persuade the others like 'Washington' did.

As an exchange for helping each other, is there anything you 'personally' want us to do?'

Wayne still couldn't trust this group of 'Macken Reefs.' He remembered that one of the personalities would find opportunities to secretly kill cats. If he was too careless, he might be sold out by one of them at any time.

So, Wayne still maintained a businesslike appearance:

'Just like I told you in the beginning, our detective agency is just conducting a routine investigation and also helping ordinary, harmless 'fallen.' This has nothing to do with personal interests and is not aimed at anyone. You just need to continue assisting us with the normal investigation.'