After thinking it over, Freya decided there were only two ways to reach a better ending.
The first was to increase her own combat power until she could take part in the operation against Obsidian’s mastermind.
That would be difficult.
She had no idea where to obtain the later War Path potions.
The second option was to increase the number of people on her side.
If ten people attacked one enemy and three of them were killed, what would happen if she brought twenty people?
Or thirty?
The Earth Church members had appeared in the death preview for only a few seconds.
Even so, their expressions when they saw Freya and their willingness to enter a dangerous area in search of survivors were enough for her to reach a conclusion.
They were good people.
Freya was using the War Freya save file again for this simulation.
She already had a powerful save file, so why would she use her ordinary body?
Freya walked through the early morning streets.
Although it was still very early, many people were already hurrying along.
There were students rushing to class and workers trying to reach their jobs on time.
That was when Freya remembered that she was supposed to be one of those students.
She could not even be bothered to go to the academy and ask for leave.
She would simply skip class.
As Freya had that thought, someone in the crowd caught her attention.
A young woman wearing a monocle stood perfectly still among the rushing pedestrians.
A cane rested beneath her right hand.
She looked like a rock standing firm in the middle of a fast-moving river.
The contrast made her impossible to ignore.
There was another reason Freya kept looking.
The young woman was beautiful.
People were naturally drawn to attractive faces, and Freya was no exception.
What was wrong with looking at a pretty girl for a few extra seconds?
The young woman glanced from side to side as though searching for someone.
Before long, she noticed Freya, who also looked slightly out of place among the hurried crowd.
Surprise and delight appeared on her face.
Then she frowned, turned away without a word, and quickly disappeared into the crowd.
Freya tilted her head.
She did not dwell on it.
She still had important business to handle.
Following the original Freya’s memories, she soon reached northern Auxerre.
A huge domed structure stood on the far side of a spacious plaza.
Tall, narrow stained-glass windows lined both side walls.
The main entrance consisted of a pair of arched wooden doors.
Above them was a carved image of a seed taking root and beginning to sprout.
A long line had already formed beside the Earth Church.
Two believers dressed in pale green were handing out free food.
Freya had seen Earth Church members once through the original Freya’s memories and again in the system’s death preview.
Seeing them in person still made her wonder whether their clothing was a little strange.
The most obvious detail was their bare feet.
Every civilian waiting for food wore shoes.
Some pairs were old, torn, and barely holding together, but they were still shoes.
The Earth Church believers wore nothing on their feet at all.
They clearly were not too poor to afford footwear.
Freya suspected the church had some kind of rule requiring believers to keep their feet in direct contact with the earth.
Was this their way of staying grounded?
Their pale green clothing was also loose and thin.
The closest comparison Freya could think of was a petite girl wearing nothing but an oversized shirt borrowed from her boyfriend.
The shirt was large enough to cover everything that needed covering.
There was no real risk of exposing anything.
Still thinking about it, Freya headed toward the church entrance.
Her mind was occupied with one question.
How could she gain the Earth Church’s trust and persuade them to help?
Should she tell them she was a supernatural practitioner who had foreseen a disaster thirty days in the future?
Or should she pretend to be an ordinary person who had suffered a setback and come seeking divine guidance?
Another option was to trick them into going to Trinity Row first.
They could fight Obsidian’s mastermind and lose several people.
Once they fully believed her warning about the disaster, Freya could ask them for some kind of token.
She could end the simulation, carry the token into the next run, and use it to gain their trust immediately.
Freya considered all those possibilities.
She did not even make it through the door.
A male believer who stood at least six feet tall raised one arm and blocked her path.
Freya was only a little over five feet three.
She had to tilt her head back to look at him.
She was about to put on her most charming expression and ask what was wrong when the man spoke with complete seriousness.
“I’m sorry. Unaffiliated practitioners are not welcome here.”
“Please leave.”
Freya blinked.
She stared at him for several seconds.
What?
What was that supposed to mean?
After a short pause, Freya tried to charm her way through.
She clasped her hands in front of her cheek.
“You’ve been doing good work here, giving food to civilians and helping people in need.”
“I only wanted to learn more about the Earth Church…”
The man interrupted her.
“Please leave.”
Freya clearly saw the disgust on his face.
He did not look at her as though she were a cute, harmless girl.
He looked at her as though she were a cockroach he wanted gone.
This was the first time Freya had ever encountered such a reaction.
People were usually far more forgiving because of her appearance.
This man seemed completely immune.
For one absurd moment, Freya wondered whether he simply had no interest in girls.
“All right.”
His attitude was firm enough that Freya had no intention of forcing her way inside.
She turned and left.
As she walked away, she considered the most likely reason the church had rejected her.
It was probably because she was a War Path practitioner.
“But he knew I was a practitioner just by looking at me?”
“How did he do that?”
Freya did not understand it.
Now that she had a theory, though, she could simply test it.
She ended the simulation immediately.
Back in reality, Freya spent an uneventful hour lying on her bed while she waited for the cooldown to finish.
The moment it did, she began another simulation.
This time, she selected Save Slot 00.
She entered as an ordinary person.
Inside the simulation, Freya stared at the dark sky outside and lay silently on her bed.
“I feel like I only just went to sleep.”
Who could have expected the previous simulation to end so quickly?
Freya could not fall asleep again.
With nothing better to do, she got out of bed and began reading.
When she opened her eyes again, she found herself slumped over the desk.
Morning sunlight streamed through the window and fell across her face.
Freya narrowed her eyes until they adjusted to the light.
Then she stretched.
“Knowledge really is useful.”
Just as in the previous simulation, Freya left home and headed for the Earth Church.
At the same time and in the same place, she once again saw the beautiful young woman with the monocle.
The girl had left a strong impression on her.
Freya expected her to turn and walk away again.
Instead, the young woman headed straight toward her.
She was about half a head taller than Freya.
Her features were as delicate as a doll’s, and her brilliant ruby-colored eyes reflected Freya’s figure.
A graceful smile curved across her lips.
When she reached Freya, she gave a slight bow with the elegant manner of a gentleman.
“My extraordinarily adorable lady, you look terribly troubled.”
“Have you run into some difficulty?”
She placed one hand against her chest.
“Tell me all about it. The great detective Euphemia would be delighted to assist you.”
Freya stared at her.
What?
This was completely different from the previous simulation.
Freya reacted without thinking.
“Why did you come over this time?”
Now it was Euphemia’s turn to look confused.
“What do you mean, this time?”
“Have we met before?”
She studied Freya’s face.
“That can’t be right. If I’d ever met someone this cute, there’s no way I would’ve forgotten her.”
Freya thought about it.
There was only one difference between this simulation and the last.
This time, she was an ordinary person rather than a War Path practitioner.
Did War Path practitioners naturally make people dislike them?
Whatever the reason, Euphemia had treated her differently based on that one change.
That meant she was probably not an ordinary person either.
Euphemia continued speaking.
“So, what’s troubling you?”
“Did you lose something precious?”
“Or would you like to uncover some embarrassing secret about someone you dislike?”
She smiled confidently.
“I could solve either problem with ease.”
Freya could not resist commenting.
“Does solving something that minor really qualify you as a great detective?”
Euphemia’s expression stiffened.
“Ahem. Those were only examples.”
“Examples.”
She straightened her posture.
“I’ve already handled seven or eight cases, and I solved every one of them perfectly.”
Euphemia’s reasoning was simple.
How serious could the problems of such a soft, adorable girl possibly be?
Freya’s next question made her freeze.
“So, are you a supernatural practitioner?”
There was no probing or indirect approach.
Freya wanted an answer, so she asked.
This was a simulation.
There was no reason to waste time dancing around the subject.
“Uh…”
Euphemia suddenly felt a faint urge to retreat.
The existence of supernatural power was still a secret to the general public.
If Freya already knew about practitioners, then she clearly was not an ordinary civilian with no understanding of the hidden world.
Her problem was probably not ordinary either.
Euphemia tried to test the waters.
“Did you hear some strange urban legend and start wondering whether supernatural powers exist?”
She gave an awkward laugh.
“Those stories are made up. There’s no such thing as supernatural power.”
Freya immediately looked disappointed.
“You aren’t one?”
“Then I’ll be going.”
“Ahem. Wait.”
Euphemia hurriedly stopped her.
“Fine. I’ll be honest.”
“I am a supernatural practitioner.”
Freya asked another question.
“Can you tell me which Path you follow?”
Euphemia stared at her.
Was this girl serious?
She studied Freya carefully for a long time.
Only after deciding that Freya was probably a good person did she answer.
“I follow the Scholar Path.”
“What about you? Are you a practitioner too?”
Freya shook her head.
“Not yet.”
Another question seemed to appear over Euphemia’s head.
What did that mean?
Freya was thinking about the Scholar Path.
She had never heard of it.
It did not sound especially useful in a fight.
Still, she continued.
“Great detective, suppose I told you that an incredibly dangerous criminal was planning something terrible inside this city.”
“The plan will succeed in thirty days.”
Freya paused.
“Actually, it should be twenty-nine days now.”
“In any case, if the plan succeeds, the entire city will be consumed by fire, and countless people will die.”
Someone might have thought Freya was being absurdly careless by revealing such an important secret to a stranger.
But Freya was searching for a route that could clear the crisis.
She needed to try as many approaches as possible.
Before she could finish speaking, Euphemia’s eyes lit up.
“I accept the case!”
“You want me to investigate the mastermind behind the plot, right?”
“Leave it to me.”
The Scholar Path had given Euphemia an extraordinary capacity for learning.
Euphemia herself loved detective novels and mystery stories.
She had devoted herself to studying investigative methods and developed an exceptional ability to read people.
By observing tiny facial expressions and unconscious body movements, she could judge someone’s emotional state and determine whether they were lying.
Her method was different from Rena’s Mind Path lie detection.
Rena’s was a supernatural ability and was completely accurate.
Euphemia’s skill had been learned.
Someone with professional training could potentially deceive her.
That was how Euphemia had noticed Freya’s distress.
Freya was also adorable, so Euphemia had approached her without hesitation.
During the previous simulation, however, Freya had been using the War Freya save file.
From her clothing, posture, and the many small details around her, Euphemia had concluded that she looked as though she had just fled a murder scene.
She had not looked remotely trustworthy.
That was why Euphemia had turned around and left.
Back in the present, Euphemia might have hesitated if Freya had asked her to investigate an ordinary serial killer.
That kind of case could draw the killer’s attention and get her murdered.
This was different.
Freya was asking her to find the hidden trigger for a disaster that could destroy the entire city.
If Euphemia did nothing, she would probably die anyway.
But if she investigated, she might get to save the world.
How could she possibly turn down something that exciting?