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However, clearly, to both parties from the earlier eye contact, the existence of the other was unexpected and could not be ignored.

“Strange… a demigod, perhaps, but not quite. Ordinary demigods don’t make me feel threatened—without Divine Power, he might be even stronger than me.”

“And what is he here for… Before I came to the Mortal Realm, I only heard about the existence of wizards, a power controlled by the Goddess of the Magic Net before she ascended to godhood. I didn’t expect there to be a different method that allows mortals to wield power.”

Contemplating internally, Mephisto wasn’t overly worried, only somewhat surprised and curious.

Previously, when humans lived together, this great demon from the Nine Hells naturally didn’t dare to do anything under the watchful eye of Prometheus. But to his surprise, upon arriving in this newly established town of just a couple of years, he encountered an extraordinary character.

The individual possessed divine power, which was why Mephisto initially thought he was a demigod. But after sensing just a bit, he dismissed that guess.

The divine power stemmed from the light rain from decades ago, now present within many creatures of the land. Presumably, the human also got his from the same source—but what truly made Mephisto wary was the man’s vigorous vitality and formidable physique.

He had no doubt that all the tactics available to him in the present world would likely have little effect on the other man, who could easily tear apart those behemoths with Divine Blood flowing through them, using just his bare hands.

Fortunately, it seemed that the man had no intention of fighting him in Giant Wood Town. So, today’s plan would proceed as usual.

The priests have been living too comfortably, holding onto the hope that their acts of deceiving the deities would go unnoticed or, even if discovered, not be pursued by the gods. And so, he decided to take matters into his own hands and add a shovelful of dirt to their graves.

He hoped that under the threat of reality, they would make some right choices.

“Mephisto, let me advise you one last time. If you retract your earlier ‘Speech’ now and pray devoutly in The Temple, you can still be forgiven.”

While pondering, Mephisto’s presence became noticed by an increasing number of people. Some came for the spectacle, some held faces of disdain, but all made way for him, opening up a path to the platform.

As one of the main characters of the day, no one wished to obstruct his arrival.

Perhaps out of goodwill or to ensure the appearance of rules in the trial, when Mephisto reached the platform, a priest dedicated to the Goddess of Hearthfire sternly issued a final warning to him.

“I appreciate your kindness, Your Excellency, but I maintain my innocence. Moreover, I believe that everyone will soon come to agree with my thoughts.”

His voice wasn’t loud but was gentle and determined, and Mephisto’s response stirred commotion within the crowd once again. People buzzed with conversation, yet it didn’t affect the individual before the platform. He simply stepped forward, looking at the priest blocking his way.

“May I go up now? In fact, I am quite looking forward to speaking shortly.”

“…Since you insist on your view, then come up. I hope you won’t regret it.”

The priest frowned but still stepped aside under the gaze of thousands of spectators, allowing access to the steps leading up to the platform.

“Thank you.”

With a polite smile, Mephisto then stepped onto the platform.

He stood at the center, in front of him the priests of different temples and those universally recognized as wise; behind and to his sides, not far off, was a dense crowd of people.

The adjudicators of this trial claimed that for a fair result, everyone present, whether on or off the platform, whether a resident of Giant Wood Town or not, had the right to speak if they wished, regardless of the side they supported.

But everyone knew, no one would stand with this unbeliever; it was merely a way to give the audience a sense of participation.

And so, as Mephisto stood firmly in the center of the platform, as the ‘buffoon’ of a spectacle arrived, the host on the platform immediately stood up.

A mocking smile on his lips, he looked at the once-familiar figure. He was there to preside over this grand event because he was the first to report Mephisto for spreading heretical Thought.

And the reason he did so was partly personal grudge, although such spite was entirely one-sided in his mind.

“It appears you are sticking to your own opinion, Mephisto, I must say, your existence truly makes me feel ashamed before the deities. To think that among humans there could be such a faithless person like you, and you don’t even seem to feel any sense of shame.”

“People feel shame for their mistakes, but I don’t think I’m wrong, and as for you, I don’t know. Moreover—you are supposed to be just the host of this trial, right?”

His tone calm, Mephisto looked in no way like someone about to receive a verdict, but rather like a sage proclaiming his ideology.

On the contrary, the one standing before him naturally became the sinner who prevented the spread of truth.

“You—”

Unexpectedly faced with a rebuttal, the host was about to say something when he noticed the Temple of Law Priest in the center, casting his gaze upon him.

As judges, although they did not approve of Mephisto’s lack of faith either, they at least had to appear fair and impartial.

Taking a deep breath, the host had to suppress his emotions, no longer addressing Mephisto, but turning to the crowd of onlookers instead.

“Ladies and gentlemen, I believe you all know the reason why we are gathered here today.”

“He, Mephisto, a resident of Giant Wood Town, and like us, a human created by the gods. He openly admits his disbelief, and thinks that humans should not have faith in the deities, an undoubtedly intolerable wickedness.”

“However, as Bronze Humanity worshiping the gods, we will give him the right to argue his case fairly in front of The Temple, rather than judge him blindly. Now, please be quiet!”

After saying these final words and the scene fell silent, the host stepped back and looked at a middle-aged man sitting on the left.

That was Devos, the Priest in Giant Wood Town responsible for the worship of the Divine King, said to be a friend of the High Priest Ossen. Receiving the host’s gaze, he nodded in acknowledgment and then stood up, looking towards Mephisto who stood in the center of the platform.

As the person of highest status here, it was proper for him to speak first.

“Mephisto, as a Priest of the Divine King, I cannot understand your lack of faith, for the gods are so magnificent; as a human created by the gods, I equally cannot understand your lack of faith, for they are so benevolent. Now, in front of so many humans, could you elucidate your views to us, tell everyone the reason behind your disbelief?”

Perhaps to make the trial more interesting, Devos did not attack with words right from the start.

The onlooking crowd seemed to approve of his words, although they had come to understand the thoughts of this unbeliever through various means, it certainly wasn’t as authentic as hearing it from his own lips.

“Of course, in fact, I have been waiting for quite a while today.”

Under the scrutiny of the crowd, Mephisto spoke with a smile, yet none of the humans present could understand the underlying meaning of his words.

“The main reason I stand here today, opposing faith yet not ritual, is because in my view, the spiritual and the material do not mix, just like ritual and faith are not the same.”

“The gods possess powers far beyond mortals, they can bring benefits to humans, so humans should rightfully express their respect through rituals, which is beyond reproach, but faith is different.”

“Faith means to recognize all the thoughts of an existence, or to rely on an existence for hope, and in this regard, the gods obviously do not have the qualifications to be believed in.”

Surveying his surroundings, Mephisto finally reiterated:

“The Divine King is above all gods, the gods obey him, honor him, but they do not have faith in him, for the relationship between the Divine King and the gods is mutual dependency. Without the regular deities, the Divine King’s throne loses its value; the status of a Priest is above that of the common man, people respect you, follow your instructions, but they do not have faith in you, because the relationship between Priests and common men is also one of mutual dependency, without ordinary humans, there would be no need for Priests.”

“My denial of faith is not a denial of the gods’ power and existence, but rather a denial of their higher status.”

“I acknowledge sacrifice, but not faith, because in my view, gods and humans are not one-sided in their needs for each other, there is mutual necessity. Given this, then faith naturally does not have a soil to exist upon.”