New Gods of North America

Having initially dealt with Priest Tyrrell, Wayne planned to bypass Priest Barzini and continue privately chatting with other priests.

Just then, the other two exorcism teams returned, so Wayne took a detour to inquire about any new developments.

Inessa and Lena were not in the returning group.

The former was still leading a team to search for the killer and the missing Mr. Weisman, only sending some people back to rest and then relieve the others in shifts.

The latter had largely completed the search of the priests' residences but used the excuse of being "tired" to return to the detective agency as soon as possible, with no intention of entering the church.

Wayne reacted quickly, immediately instructing the detective to stop Willie, who was driving the carriage, and pulling Lena back to the church entrance.

Handing over the registered items, Lena opened the bag and exclaimed, "'Satanic Church' items, where did you find these?"

Wayne succinctly replied, "Priest Tyrrell gave them."

Strictly speaking, the "Satanic Church" is not "one" church, but a collective term for "a bunch" of churches.

Starting around the Middle Ages in the Old Continent, the Holy Church created a system to distort the doctrines and images of deities in other faiths, starting with organizations that believed in the Holy Spirit.

For example, a deity originally worshiped as the god of "harvest" would be changed to one who caused "disaster," and one associated with "fertility" would be portrayed as inducing "lewdness."

The "names" and images of these deities would also be modified, usually depicted as fallen devils or demons.

Under the strong pressure from the Holy Church and its branches like the Windsor Church in the Old Continent, this process had been going "smoothly."

However, during the "Age of Exploration," the situation took a dramatic turn, or rather, a "backlash."

When people were no longer confined to one place, some who had received Holy Spirit education, though not questioning the "world" described in the "Holy Scriptures," chose to embrace and worship various evil gods, devils, and demons.

Additionally, some distorted faiths proved remarkably resilient, with followers continuously worshiping those deities.

The combination of these factors led to the emergence of various new "heretical faiths."

Some larger, historically rooted heretical faiths would have their own names, such as the "Wisdom Sect" or the "Life School."

Other smaller, unsystematic heretical faiths would be collectively referred to as "Satanic Churches"—using Satan, the most powerful demon in Holy Spirit propaganda, as a synonym, although their specific objects of worship could be diverse and inconsistent.

In essence, it meant "demon worship."

This phenomenon was particularly prominent in the New Continent.

During the early colonial period, if a Satanic Church follower infiltrated a place, after a few years, a group of cultists might emerge.

Some founders of demon worship were themselves "rogue individuals" with limited theoretical knowledge, resulting in doctrines that were often chaotic and self-made, forming their own sects through a mix of copying, modifying, and personal speculation.

Easier cases could be resolved by eliminating the founder or core team, leading to the demise of the demon worship.

More troublesome cases could prove impossible to eradicate.

Wayne had heard of a Satanic Church in the New Continent that worshiped succubi and advocated debauchery and hedonism during his theological theory classes.

How should he put it?

It seemed to have a broad market prospect just from the sound of it...

Lena flipped through the bag, and Peter somehow popped up, quickly picking out a gem-encrusted brooch and a metal incense ball that looked like a mystical item.

Wayne asked seriously, "Were there any issues with the priests' residences?"

Lena, busy with identification, examined the gem against the light without looking up:

"No. We weren't allowed to rummage through their private collections, or examine their files and letters.

Although we found some hidden safes, the church wouldn't let us continue inspecting closely if we couldn't find any obvious problems after opening them.

"If there were real issues, there would definitely be more private residences, or things hidden deeper.

We can only say that we haven't found any 'petty thieves' among them so far."

After examining the gem, Lena snatched the metal incense ball from Peter and continued to scrutinize it, saying, "This feels quite useful.

We should make any detective who daydreams in class wear this."

What the...

Was that what this thing was for?

But the "investigation of residences" route was indeed a dead end...

If it were just a fishing expedition, Wayne could collude with Priest Tyrrell to "mess with people," as the old rascal's behind-the-scenes scheming would likely lead him to assist.

However, this would turn the matter into a purely partisan "struggle," and Wayne preferred to "follow the rules" for now, not covering up those who were genuinely problematic and not forcing accusations on those who weren't.

So Wayne handed over another, larger bag.

Lena opened it and asked, "What's this? Couldn't you change clothes back at the detective agency?"

Wayne shook his head.

"These aren't my clothes; they belong to the escaped Mr. Weisman.

I recall it hasn't been a month since the last attack on the detective agency when you summoned the sage.

If we still can't find him by then, we might need you to pray to the sage to confirm his location."

Lena said "Oh" and tightened the bag of dirty clothes, tossing it aside disdainfully:

"Praying isn't a problem.

However, considering past experiences, the last case of the defiled holy emblem was also related to the Church of Light, and the sage didn't respond then.

You might need to prepare for a 'bad outcome.'"

"I understand," Wayne replied.

Then Lena picked up the gem brooch.

"Can I take this gem off?

It looks pretty good, but the demon design next to it is too ugly; I don't even know who imagined it."

Hmm...

The "New School Demon Worshiper" seemed to be looked down upon by the "Votary of the Old Evil God."

Wayne quickly gave up on commenting and shrugged, "If Inessa looks at it and thinks it's okay, I have no objections."

Anyway, this thing probably can't be worn out in public.

Since it's not a mystical item and doesn't seem to be related to any proper evil god, "recycling" it isn't a bad thing.

Returning to the church to continue privately chatting with the priests, with the so-called "team alignment" assumption, the local church's ecosystem seemed a bit unhealthy.

Of course, from another perspective, it could be said to be "very healthy."

The local priests were all so-called "Southerners," with generally good family backgrounds, often carrying the "anti-outsider" sentiment that is now common in America.

Priests are skilled at dealing with people from all walks of life, so this is naturally not visible usually, but with a little effort, it can still be explored from the side.

For example, when opening up topics, getting close, and chatting casually, carefully listen to the old stories they mention.

If their families had servants or slaves in childhood, or if they mention "having a mill at home" or "attending dances," they couldn't possibly be from working-class families.

As for the "North-South" stance, it's even easier to distinguish.

America's so-called "North" is broadly developed from some "Old Continent commoner colonies," including the landing site of the April Grass.

Although wealth disparities have emerged, tracing back to the source, they were initially families who couldn't survive in the Old Continent, "ordinary" or below.

Because the initial starting point was low enough, everyone had no retreat or room for maneuver.

To survive, they could only "huddle together for warmth."

Once they deviated from the "collective" and "consensus," it was almost impossible to survive.

Some people who gradually rose in such an environment passed down a temperament that was generally closer to the so-called "union leader," pursuing a sense of "everyone is the same" and "we are our own people."

For example, the mayor sometimes personally tends to his lawn and competes with neighbors to see who tends it better.

Even the poorest townspeople can drink a cup, chat, or argue face-to-face with him in the tavern.

Metaphorically, it's like the trees in a forest, tall and short, but they believe "everyone grows on the same land," only that some trees can breathe "air at different heights."

The "South" is currently based on the aristocratic colonial rule left over from the Old Continent, mainly the Windsor Kingdom, with divisions such as "nobles," "knights," "commoners," and "slaves" from the beginning.

The social order and atmosphere in the South are more like "living in a building."

People can of course "go up" or "go down," but the different floors are still relatively "distinct."

They believe that people on different "floors" should do different things, the master is the master, the servant is the servant, reflecting a division of "we are different."

At the same time, not everyone is qualified to "go up."

If someone also becomes a "master," then good, join us, and interact less with those previous guys in the future.

Learn to look at problems from "our" perspective.

Wayne didn't want to evaluate which underlying logic was superior or inferior.

The distinction between them, when applied to specific individuals, wasn't completely absolute in relation to "region" and "origin."

But some things are like "sweet soy milk" and "salty soy milk."

They look similar, but as soon as you taste them, you can find a clear difference.

Then he pondered the taste and suddenly felt that Priest Tyrrell's view wasn't without reason.

However, Wayne still preferred a simpler approach, regardless of whether you're a Southerner or a Northerner,

If you do bad things, you're a "bad person," and if you hit me, you're an "enemy."

Vice versa.