The villain's goal is to save the heroine

He quickened his pace to keep up with the other person. After passing through a residential area, the three of them finally returned to the upper city where "fire" was more abundant.

"Phew... That was a close call. I felt like if I had run any slower I would have been caught."

As soon as he landed on the street, Hermann let out a long breath, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and showed a relieved expression.

The scene just now was really creepy.

As for Lynn...

How should I put it, the Ice Heart Pendant is a cure for unhappiness. After all this time, he has almost forgotten the pain and looks calm and composed.

At this moment, he placed Latia back on the ground, looked at the girl who was still calm, and sighed inwardly at the powerful aura of the heroine. Then, he solemnly thanked Hermann:

"This time, we are all grateful to Captain Herman. If you hadn't intervened in time to open the barrier passage from the outside, I'm afraid we would have been swallowed up by those unknown creatures. In short, thank you very much for your timely intervention."

I have to say that before this, Lin En really looked down on this uncle and always called him by his name, but this time he lent a helping hand at such an important moment, so it would be a bit unreasonable not to add the title of "Captain".

but…

"Hahahahaha!" Hearing this, Herman rubbed his head and laughed heartily. "Oh, Master Lin, this is serious. It was just a coincidence! I just happened to... ahem, care for the fallen girls in the 'Goddess' House', and then I noticed the situation in that area... Ahaha! I can't help it, Captain Mona is too strict... Anyway, Master Lin is blessed. It's destined that nothing will happen in a place like that!"

Honestly, although Herman's words sounded flattering, if we look at the fate shown in the game script, perhaps there really was some kind of divine will that prevented him and Latia from dying in that place.

"You seem to have noticed the abnormality in that area a long time ago?" Lin En did not pay attention to what the scraps said, but asked tentatively.

"Emm..." Hearing this, Herman folded his hands and looked thoughtful. "Should I call it abnormal or intuition? Anyway, I have always felt that this is quite ominous."

"Can you tell me the details?"

Since it has been confirmed that the matter is related to the Witch Cult, it is possible that Hermann has met Lavinica.

"Oh, Master Lin, you're putting me in a difficult position..." Herman said with a wry smile, "I just... let me put it this way, because I also realized that something bad might happen in Siena, so for a knight who came back alive from the battlefield, my instinct tells me that it's very dangerous there... Don't underestimate instinct. As someone who has lived for decades longer, I need to remind you two... Hmm? Who is this girl? Have we met somewhere... Okay, that's not important. What's important is that those bastards in the Kingdom of Lorraine are studying some secret curse magic. If you have a premonition of danger, it's probably true! Even if it's fake, it's still true! Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"Well, sort of..." Lynn responded thoughtfully.

Although Herman's words were understandable, Lin En always felt that the other party knew too much.

Or maybe a little too strong!

Herman's performance in the game was too useless, giving people a feeling of "Hey, has this person been replaced?", as if he had replaced the master.

Lin En was certainly not satisfied with this answer and wanted to ask more, but Latia spoke first: "Such important information, why didn't you share it earlier? If you had told the church earlier, such a terrible thing wouldn't have happened!"

Miss Saint's words did not sound polite. There was probably some anger in them, but more of it was unreasonable.

Speaking of which, Miss Saint and Herman seem to have a natural incompatibility. Last time, they argued for ages, and then were killed and left with nothing. Now that they know the other party had a premonition, they're starting to blame him again. Really...

Good food and fun-loving.

Chapter 315 Reversed?

Facing Latia's question, Herman did not get angry, nor did he evade it. Instead, he said in a slightly mocking tone:

"First, I have no obligation to communicate with your church. Second, even if you need to report me, please report it to Captain Mona, okay? When will it be the church's turn to hold me accountable? This is overstepping our bounds! Finally... didn't I just say this? That's just my intuition. Do you trust someone else's intuition so easily?"

Obviously, Hermann was not interested in the church in the first place, so it was even less likely that he would take the initiative to contact the church.

but…

"Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures!" Unwilling to concede, Latia argued, "Since you know Siena is unstable, you should prioritize your valuable experience. This is a responsibility not only to yourself but also to others!"

Well, there seems to be nothing wrong with this. If Herman had taken his premonition seriously and shared this information in advance, perhaps things would not have developed into what they are now.

From the perspective of hindsight, Hermann was indeed a bit irresponsible.

only…

"Oh, emergency..." Herman was a little unhappy when he heard these four words. "I say, you guys are the ones hiding the news. How can I tell whether it's an emergency?"

As he spoke, his brows furrowed.

"And... honestly, this church's behavior is disgusting! What do you mean by an extraordinary period? Who defined an extraordinary period? Haven't you noticed that so many new terms are coming out of the church! Like 'spreading the gospel~', 'repentance and rebirth~', 'pilgrimage and baptism~'... They've also arbitrarily defined their own set of standards, like weekly church services and self-reflection. They don't care whether others agree or not, they just demand everyone follow their ideas. They're imposing their own dross on others, and they call it 'spiritual salvation~'! Please, can you learn to respect others before you speak?"

Herman was a little excited when he said this, as if he hated the church to a certain extent, and then he was finally forced to say it out loud, and he couldn't help but become sarcastic!

However, having said that, there doesn't seem to be anything wrong.

The church, after all, has its own set of procedures and rituals. From the perspective of devout believers, these are naturally sacred and bring one closer to the gods. But if you think about it, aren't these so-called procedures and rituals also created by humans?

So, do these believers believe in humans or some illusory God?

"I beg to differ with you!"

Latia was naturally provoked again, having forgotten that she had just walked through the gates of hell, and began to refute with a red face and thick neck:

"First of all, we don't actively recruit believers, and we don't force others to believe in our ideas!"

Huh? Isn't it because I can't beat others?

"Secondly, we don't require believers to attend worship services every week, nor do we force indoctrinate people! Those who agree with us will naturally stand with us. Those who oppose us will naturally stay away from us. We respect everyone's ideas and never require anyone to do anything. That's why we can always communicate in a friendly manner and help each other. If everyone was willing to convert, there wouldn't be so many disasters!"

This sounds very much like that.

In fact, the church is a bit like a habitat for idealists and kind-hearted people. It can't be said that there is anything wrong with it, but...how should I put it, it feels like the slogans and goals are too loud, and as a result, they find that they can't cope with the complexity of society and human nature at all, and then they are left with only a mouth.

"Oh, then why are you questioning me?" Herman asked, folding his hands. "The extraordinary times you mentioned are just your thoughts on extraordinary times. I know nothing about them."

"Well…!"

As expected, Latiya asked for trouble again. She bit her lip, not knowing how to refute.

But Herman didn't stop there. He continued, "And what I can't understand the most is why the things you care about have become extraordinary times, while the things you don't care about don't even bother to look at them?"

Herman's expression grew serious. "As I mentioned last time we met, I've actually come into contact with the Witch Cult. However, even though the Church defines the Witch Cult as evil, I can't say I hate them that much. The fundamental reason is that when I first came into contact with them, they were primarily engaged in disaster relief."

"Huh? Disaster relief?" Lin En was a little stunned.

Since the game didn't show that many details, Lin En had the impression that the Witch Cult was just a group of destructive, unreasonable terrorists. But when he met Herman last time, he learned that the Witch Cult actually had a logic to their behavior. And this time...

ha?

Are the Witch Cult good people?

Why does it feel like things are about to turn around?!

Then Herman nodded and explained, "Yes, disaster relief. It was a natural disaster that occurred about twenty years ago. Nearly a month of continuous heavy rain destroyed all the embankments in the Pania River Basin. The runes became ineffective, the barrier was broken, and the flooding almost destroyed all the villages and wheat fields downstream of Pania, directly or indirectly affecting hundreds of thousands of people!"

To be honest, when playing games, Lin En never paid attention to people's livelihood issues.

"And then?" Lin En couldn't help but feel curious.

"The situation was dire..." Herman's expression darkened. "Kaffa was experiencing significant conflict with the Kingdom of Lorraine at the time, and the royal family hadn't paid any attention to such matters. The lords and nobles, realizing the situation was dire, immediately fled with their high-ranking guards. Of course, even if they had stayed, they wouldn't have been able to reverse the disaster. However, if someone had stepped in to manage the aftermath, perhaps so many lives wouldn't have been lost... Only one in ten survived, that was the reality at the time."

"So you were actually there to help with disaster relief?"

"Haha!" Herman laughed loudly twice, then his expression changed. "How is that possible?! The escaped lord hired us to go there. He said he had a large amount of gold coins and beautiful slaves he had bought at great expense in his basement and hadn't taken them away. We were only there to protect his sacred private property."

"..."

Lynn can testify that this is how the nobles of this world are.

"So, you met someone from the Witch Cult?"

"Yes," Herman nodded. "Although it was useless, the Witch Cult had already built a number of shelters for the victims when we arrived. They also stole a lot of food from the nobles, trying to keep the few remaining survivors alive... Of course, they were also looking for people along the way. But to this day, I still don't understand which is more convenient: finding people or providing disaster relief."

Chapter 316 The Witch Cult is Not Simple

emm...

It has to be said that Herman's remarks did subvert Lynn's understanding of the Witch Cult.

He didn't know how much truth there was in what the other party said, but if that was true, then the Witch Cult might not be considered an unforgivable organization, but rather...

Pretty positive?

Lynn couldn't understand.

There isn't much description about the Witch Cult in the game, or maybe he focused too much attention on other places, causing him to miss some important details.

In short, Lavinica is indeed the person with the most scenes in the Witch Cult.

However, when Lavinica had the most scenes, she gave people the impression of being a mentally unstable crazy woman, which led to Lynn's not very good impression of the Witch Cult.

However, if we put aside some stereotypes and look at the Witch Cult more objectively, aren't there many logics worth exploring?

Lin En was indeed somewhat affected, but...

"The examples you cited are completely unconvincing. They are just a means to mislead ordinary people."

As a staunch supporter of the church, Latia would not easily compromise with Hermann:

"Or, even if we take a step back and assume that what you said is the truth, I believe that it was just the whim of a few conscientious people! Regardless, it's undeniable that the Witch Cult directly or indirectly caused the deaths of tens of millions of people throughout history. They even once wanted to overthrow the entire world and turn it into hell. This is the most fundamental thing!"

Ok…

Judging from the results, there is indeed nothing wrong with Miss Saint. In the game, the Witch Cult did mess up Kafa for a while. If it weren't for the extraordinary ability of the eldest princess, Kafa might have been overthrown in the fourth volume!

but…

"You misunderstood. I didn't use this example to prove anything about the Witch Cult. I just wanted to use it to illustrate a simple truth: Compared to those who just sit in a church and pray, the Witch Cult is more practical!"

Hermann continued with an unchanged expression:

"My conclusion isn't biased. I've also followed the church's deeds, and from countless examples, I can draw the same conclusion: the church is a group of hypocrites! Take the same flood as an example. If the church were to handle it, what would normally happen? The church would say, 'Ah, everyone, don't be afraid. This is just a test from the gods. We will definitely survive. There's no need to grieve for those who died; they simply returned to the gods.' That sounds pretty good, right? But what I want to say is, shouldn't they be like the Witch Cult, personally saving people first, dealing with the flood, and then restoring construction? What's the point of telling people not to be afraid?"

At this point, Hermann became a little excited again:

"As for the claim that the Witch Cult murdered tens of millions of people... yes, that may indeed be true! But my view is that change always comes with sacrifice! If the Witch Cult was simply out for killing, then I think what Miss Saint said is correct! However, if they also have a heart to save the people, then the meaning is completely different! Look, isn't the church's teachings quite gentle? But have they achieved any tangible results? Apart from instilling their own teachings in others and lulling people into silence like soothing a child, they can do nothing! They simply don't realize that the world is in such a mess, and that they themselves are part of the bad chain!"

"Extraordinary times? 90% of the world's civilians are constantly living in extraordinary times. Can they see that?"

"..."

"..."

It was hard to say whether it was because Herman was too arrogant or his words were too deafening. After hearing what he said, Lin En and Latia could not help but remain silent.

Lin En initially thought that "Fallen Girl" was just a piece of crap about minotaurs. However, at some point, the quality of the game began to deteriorate, and it seemed to have gradually turned into a conspiracy game with a big chess move.

However, when he thought that all this was a despicable conspiracy, that everything was manipulated by the Witch Cult, and that the Witch Cult was the biggest villain, after hearing what Herman said, things...

It doesn’t seem that simple?

Lynn felt a little messy.

He didn't understand what the core of "Fallen Girl" was based on.

As for Latia...

Obviously, Herman's words successfully hit the Saint Lady's pain point.

In any case, for a girl who grew up in the church and firmly believed in the church's purpose, Latia would definitely not be able to accept such outrageous remarks!

However, Miss Saint is not someone who would blindly favor the church.

In other words, after the last foreshadowing, she was actually very accepting of different opinions. However, what Latia did not expect was that Hermann's words became more and more extreme, which was basically a poke at the spine of the church...!

Of course she was not convinced, but of course she would not get angry.

As a perfect saint except for some cognitive problems, Latiya is not that narrow-minded.

The reason she remained silent was that after carefully listening to the nutritious parts of Hermann's words, she began to think about the church's practices.

Yes, Latia also had her own logic. She didn't think there was anything wrong with the church's philosophy, but rather the way it was put into practice.

Therefore, when it is known that there are indeed problems in the church, how to improve it is something we are trying to figure out.

that…

The example Herman told this time is actually a starting point, isn’t it?

Obviously, if Latia had not been destroyed like in the game, this heroine would have grown up to be a very powerful person!

Of course, now is not the time to discuss this issue.

Lin En didn't know why he suddenly went off topic, but the fact was, they had just escaped from that terrible barrier!

and…

It's early morning now, not the time for drinking tea and chatting. Why are you still lost in thought?

"Okay, let's end this topic for now. We will have time to talk about it in detail tomorrow. Let's disband tonight." Lin En said.

A lot did happen that night, and the amount of information was overwhelming. He really needed to calm down and sort out the current situation.