"How... unexpected," Mother Danielle said in amazement after learning of Brother Velton's demise.

One of her closest followers wore a concerned look on her face as she asked, "Mother? is something the matter?"

"The Lord had revealed unto me that our dear Brother has been returned to his side," the leader of God's True Faith answered in a bit of detached and unsettling manner. "If I recall correctly, he had gone on a mission to the west in order to spread our Lord's word to the ignorant..."

A golden radiance emanated out from her body as she smiled faintly. "There appears to be a peculiar circumstance surrounding our Brother's departure. Prepare a welcome for an important guest."

"A guest, Mother?" the follower asked.

"Indeed. Brother Velton's deliverer intends to explain himself to us. The Lord has proclaimed it as such, and thus, we shall welcome him with open arms and listen to the confession of a sinner," Mother Danielle said as her face faded into ecstasy.

"As Truth commands," the priestess answered respectfully.

Daz learned that the man responsible for him murdering Brother Velton was a survivor from New York City, Julian Granger.

Julian had become aware of the priest's visit from the soldiers evacuating everyone and he had enough time to prepare his attack because Daz was away for so long, making him responsible too, in part.

The man had managed to blackmail a fellow survivor into distracting Mu long enough for him to sneak into the cathedral and lie in wait to attack the Truthian.

Daz was beyond enraged. Not only had this stupidly emotional man ruined any easy chance of buying many months of time to prepare more permanent countermeasures against the Truthians, but he had also done so in a manner that was entirely preventable.

If only Mu was a little bit more vigilant. If only Daz was more cautious and had used his Soul Vision to scan the area himself. If only Brother Velton wasn't so quick to try to kill his attacker... So many 'if only's clouded Daz's mind.

Thankfully, he wasn't so far gone into his anger that he'd do something just as stupid as Julian had.

He imprisoned the man and his unwilling accomplice in the underwater prison of Los Angeles, Project Lockbox.

It helped keep their identities a secret and also ensured their safety since very few people even know of the facility's existence.

While Julian was an idiot who had caused an absolute disaster and his accomplice was hardly any better for letting himself be blackmailed, they were still his citizens.

They were well-meaning and Julian was only trying to avenge his family, something that Daz could respect.

"This is going to be so dangerous..." Daz had resolved himself to meet the Truthians personally at their territory by himself.

He'd used his Future Vision many times to see what would happen at certain points in time during his visit and from what he'd seen, he would be fine bar a bit of unnecessarily pointed questioning but he couldn't help feeling uneasy regardless.

It was one thing to slowly prepare for fighting these system and esper-stripping cultists, it was another entirely to actually walk right into their den.

It was, however, too late to turn back now. Daz was already within viewing range of the massive cathedral in Massachusetts that was the centre of God's True Faith's controlled land.

He'd sent word of his visit ahead of time and the response was favourable, which both alleviated some of his worries and created new ones. His primary concern was, naturally, that he was being led to a trap.

If he hadn't used Future Vision he never would have come here at all, instead choosing to immediately prepare for war.

Daz landed his Ridomochi Final Model and stored it back into the dimension its key housed it in. 'There are a lot of people here. They haven't deactivated my system link yet nor my esper powers, which is a good sign, I suppose.'

"Welcome, High King Crowthorne," a friendly-looking man with a portly frame said as he approached.

This man was 6'2 and under his excess weight could be seen a stocky and muscular frame. He was sporting a well-groomed tonsure which really drove home to Daz that he was at the doorstep of a whole religion.

"Hello," Daz replied. "You would be...?"

"I am Abbot Thomas," the man said. "I represent Her Grace Mother Danielle's will today. Sadly, she cannot speak with you herself as her responsibilities demand all of her attention, but know that she holds a great deal of respect for you after learning of the cathedral in Fort Home. As do I, in fact. It may not be dedicated to our Lord, but it is magnificent regardless."

Daz nodded slowly. "Thank you, though my cathedral looks like nothing more than a cardboard box compared to this one," he complimented as he gestured to the utterly massive structure ahead of him.

"Your words are too kind," Abbot Thomas smiled. "Come. Let us enter, shall we? I am most eager to learn of how and why Brother Velton was gifted to the Lord so soon."

"Of course," Daz replied.

He counted the people surrounding him and ran several simulations in his head of how he would kill them all as quickly as possible if this turned out to be a trap.

Most of his plans revolved around Astral Crystal Control and Rimmy since they were permanent but he made some quick ideas for if they were slow on cutting his system connection.

"Haha, you need not be so tense. We know Brother Velton's death was an accident of sorts. The Lord proclaimed as much. Otherwise, why would you have so willingly come to see us yourself?" Abbot Thomas asked rhetorically as he led Daz into the cathedral while several dozen brothers and sisters of the faith followed behind them.

"... Forgive me if I'm a bit on edge, but one of the world's largest-ever wars was started by a single man being killed. It's even worse in my case since I was the one who killed your priest," Daz noted. "You don't even have to falsely accuse me."

"The World Wars were misguided and fuelled by sinful reasoning. Do not worry. We are just. That is something you value, no? Justice," Abbot Thomas asked.

Daz nodded. "Yes, it is."

As they walked through the cathedral Daz realised that it was more like a city than a singular place of worship. "Is this building larger on the inside than it is on the outside?"

"Yes, it is. I know we're known for turning our enemies into ash and for... other talents, but our Lord is not a one-trick pony. His gifts are numerous and vast in potential," Abbot Thomas answered gladly.

"I see," Daz said plainly as he focused his mind.

About 20-minutes later, he was put in front of a collection of masked and robed individuals. He'd been led to what Abbot Thomas called 'The Room of Truth'.

Apparently, Daz's story was going to be judged by this panel of anonymous individuals of the faith.

He did not like how vulnerable this made him feel but he would endure for now if it would buy him and his kingdom time.

He'd foreseen this meeting with his powers, so he wasn't overly worried despite the feelings of weakness this room and its inhabitants forced into him.

Abbot Thomas was standing at one side of the room to act as an impartial arbiter if things devolved beyond a formal recounting of the facts and a peaceful judgement.

"We understand that you met with a member of our clergy, Brother Richard Velton, exactly three days ago in your kingdom's capital city, Fort Home. Is this correct, High King Crowthorne?"

Daz nodded. "Yes, that is correct."

"How did your meeting with him go before his death?"

"It was amicable," Daz replied. "He treated me with respect and I listened to what he had to say. We had come to an agreement that I would consider your people's offer and set up a further meeting at a later date."

"Of course. Can you tell us how Brother Velton's death was initiated if things were so well between the two of you?"

"..." Daz narrowed his eyes in thought. 'I really don't like the feeling I'm getting from all of this. It feels like I'm not really going to get to explain myself and I'll be set up. Maybe coming here was a mistake... I didn't have enough energy to see the conclusion of this but things seemed fine...'

He collected his thoughts then said, "A citizen of mine fell from the ceiling, claiming the Church of Truth killed his wife and kidnapped his child. He is a survivor from New York City."

"I see. And do you believe these 'claims'?"

'What do they want from me here? I'm not about to lie but being honest could evoke a poor reaction... I won't bend, regardless of the consequences.' Daz thought as he scowled a bit. "Yes, I do. He had no reason to lie. I've also confirmed what he said was the truth after the fact. You value the truth, do you not? Your religion revolves around it."

The council of priests and priestesses went silent. Daz assumed they were thinking of the appropriate answer so he continued speaking instead.

"Did your people kidnap and brainwash a girl called Cassie Brown? She's seven years old, blonde-haired and missing three front teeth. I can tell when a person lies thanks to the system, much like your god, perhaps? So, please, don't try to deceive me. If you cut my connection to the system I'll take that as an admission of guilt," Daz stated with a stone-cold expression. "I'm not known to be merciful to the guilty."

"... High King Crowthorne, we are not on trial here, you are."

"Am I on trial?" Daz asked pointedly. "I thought I was just being asked about what happened to Brother Velton."

Abbot Thomas smiled sharply and replied, "You are. I apologise for us ignoring your very valid remarks. I do not know if we have the person described under our care. I would have to access the records to confirm, which I am more than willing to do after we are finished here. Is that satisfactory, High King Crowthorne?"

"Yes. That's perfectly fine," Daz answered, not wanting to escalate the situation further.

"High King Crowthorne, how exactly did Brother Velton die? We now understand from your words that his attacker lives but, forgive our arrogance, truth declares that he would not have been able to best a missionary priest in deadly combat."

"Brother Velton immediately turned violent and tried to murder my citizen. That is fair and I can respect his choice, but it wasn't necessary. I reacted in the interest of my citizens and immediately killed Brother Velton," Daz answered honestly. "He was returned to your lord in less than a second and without experiencing any pain."

While that sounded like he had been kind with his killing, it was also a threat. he could murder any one of them in the time it took to blink. Daz knew none of them missed that fact.

"I see. And how, exactly, did you deliver him to the Lord's side?"

Daz shook his head. "I do not wish to reveal that information."

Surprisingly, the council of Truthians didn't seem to be bothered by his reluctance to reveal his weapon of choice.

They asked him a few more nominal questions before wishing him well and letting him go, saying they would be in contact later.

After a powerful sermon many hours into the evening, Abbot Thomas requested a meeting with Mother Danielle which was granted.

Once he was done greeting her officially as a lesser member of the church should to the pope and mother, he asked, "Forgive me for my impudence, Mother, but I must know why we treated him so... fairly. We were not so kind to the others in similar situations to his."

Mother Danielle closed her eyes and smiled with radiance as she answered, "He is... different. I do not wish to say that which must not be said by me. Only the Lord can use my lips to speak words not of my own. Please know though, Abbot Thomas, that everything I decree is the Lord's will."

"O-Of course, Mother!" the tall middle-aged man said as he blushed in shame. "Let Truth shine on us all."

"Indeed. Let Truth shine on us all," Mother Danielle responded as she ushered the man out of her holy office.

She approached a stained glass window and looked out of it in thought. 'That boy is powerful. He can cause much chaos in my realm. It is better to stay peaceful for now as I build up my power to deal with him.'

Mother Danielle breathed in deeply, taking in the holy air around her which was covering her office as she smiled. 'I truly did not expect him to gain the ability to ignore our Holy Cleansing. How intuitive of him. Perhaps I should have shown him the Truth when I first heard of his existence...'

She chuckled a bit and whispered, "I know, my Lord. I know. Still, it is always best to err on the side of caution. It is best to wrong as a shepherd than to be wronged as a sheep."