The Two-Eyed One in the One-Eyed Village
The Shining Stars are exceptionally benevolent toward the race known as 'humans.' If I were to list the evidence and circumstances for this, a single sheet of A4 paper wouldn't be enough, but if I had to pick a few examples:
Just looking at Yoo Iseul and the believers who watch my streams is enough to see how much mercy the Shining Stars bestow upon humanity.
It’s been quite a long time since I started keeping in touch with Yoo Iseul. Between anomaly training, mental conditioning for the Awakened, and physical fitness drills, I feel like I’ve been meeting her at least once a week. Yet, I have never once heard her address the Shining Stars with the honorific "Great One" attached to their name.
Polite? Not a chance.
True to her personality—which is as rude as they come—Yoo Iseul refers to the Shining Stars as "that person," "that god of theirs," "the Stars," or even "that cult god."
Despite all that, she has never once paid the price for her blasphemy.
The believers who watch my streams are the same. These guys call the Shining Stars "Star-nee-chan" and fire off all sorts of jokes. They even draw fan art of "Star-nee-chan" with much bustier proportions than mine and post it on the fan cafe. In the comments of that fan art, they don't hesitate to spout blasphemies like, "I want to bury my face in that."
Even so, the believers, just like Yoo Iseul, have never once paid the price for their blasphemy against the Shining Stars.
You ask how I can be sure if the viewers have paid the price or not? Even when I ban the ones who cross the line for a week, they always come back perfectly fine after the week is up and start chatting again. If an ordinary person had paid the price for blasphemy, their skull would have been crushed and they would have died long ago.
As such, the Shining Stars are infinitely benevolent to humans, but they are merciless to other Fervent Followers.
Why, that guy 'Anum-Jihad' had his eyeballs burst for the price of blasphemy. And 'Nameless' had their very existence erased for daring to cosplay as the Shining Stars.
So, to summarize:
The Shining Stars seem to like humans.
And they seem to absolutely despise other Fervent Followers and Great Ones.
I don't know why. Even I, a Fervent Follower of the Shining Stars, don't know their true purpose. The fact that they haven't told me their goal is something I just accept, assuming there must be a reason for it.
In that sense, this guy in front of me right now—Park Donghyun's claim that he was able to break free from the brainwashing of a Fervent Follower as a result of praying to the Shining Stars was a story I could believe enough without having to verify it with Kim Junghwan.
After all, the Shining Stars seem to dislike other Fervent Followers from the start, and they don't seem to want their influence to grow.
…Well, though.
I didn't know they would even forgive a heretical spy who follows a Fervent Follower just because I clicked 'pray' once.
Are you really that benevolent? Sometimes it feels like you're only stingy with me.
Anyway, Kim Donghyun's words were true. Since Kim Junghwan gave the official confirmation, it was certain. In a word, one could say that Kim Donghyun converted from the 'Final Smile' cult to the 'Shining Stars' cult.
…The feeling is a bit strange. It makes it sound like I've really become a cult leader.
So, with the background of the incident somewhat sorted out, I asked Park Donghyun:
"Then isn't everything solved? Thanks to the grace of the Shining Stars, you've already escaped from that crazy cult. Why do you still need my help?"
He is a sacrificial offering meant to summon a Fervent Follower. If he were still brainwashed, he would have obediently contacted that female college student again this Sunday to offer up his body.
"You said your mind is clear now. From here on out, Kim Junghwan will handle it, so just wait here safely until next week."
Some might think I'm just dumping the work on Kim Junghwan, but that's not it. Kim Junghwan has been in and out of the conference room since earlier, busy making phone calls somewhere. He's probably preparing to suppress the cult called 'Final Smile.'
At my words, Park Donghyun answered with a troubled expression.
"As I said during our call on the broadcast, it's not as easy as it sounds."
"The reason?"
"…Excuse me for a moment."
Then, Park Donghyun suddenly started unbuttoning the black dress shirt he was wearing, one by one.
Look at this crazy bastard. Did he decide to go from sexual harassment to indecent assault?
I had absolutely no desire to see a man's chest in this sacred Awakened Association, so I was about to let out a refreshing string of curses at him for starting to strip, but I lost the words to speak at the sight that followed.
A black hole.
In his left chest, where his heart should have been, a black hole was pierced through.
Kim Junghwan, who had returned to the conference room at just the right time, was also startled to see the hole in Park Donghyun's chest.
He opened his mouth while looking down at his own body with a complex expression.
"As you can see, I've been like this ever since the welcome party for the new members. I didn't feel anything strange until a few days ago, but thanks to the grace of the Shining Stars…"
"…What on earth happened to you?"
"To put it in one word, it seems I've been mortgaged to the religion, yes."
"Ha."
I thought I would only see such mind-numbing sights inside an anomaly occurrence zone. I never expected to see this kind of thing at the Awakened Association.
In the end, wouldn't he stay in this state until that Fervent Follower's very existence is completely incinerated?
"…Put your clothes on. So, what is the name of that crazy bitch, the female college student?"
This is the most important question of the day. Between the fact that she offered all the other believers except herself as sacrifices, and the fact that the 'villa' where the human sacrifice takes place is owned by that female college student—I'm not 100% sure, but judging by the circumstances, there's a high possibility that the crazy bitch called 'the female college student' is the center of this entire incident.
In the worst-case scenario, that female college student might be a Fervent Follower herself.
If that were truly the case, it would be an unprecedented major incident. It would mean that there is another Fervent Follower in human form in this world besides me, and they are blending into this society very naturally.
Kim Donghyun answered my question.
"Uh, I don't really know her name either."
"Does that make sense? You've been in contact for six months, and you still don't know her name?"
"Is it something I absolutely have to know?"
"No, you said you were normalized thanks to the grace of the Shining Stars! Mr. Junghwan, look at how this person talks. I really think we need to arrest him…"
"Uh… Ms. Jia, are you perhaps sick somewhere?"
"…Yes?"
At Kim Junghwan's unexpected reaction, I momentarily made a blank expression.
Whether I did or not, Kim Junghwan continued.
"A female college student is a female college student, what other name would she have?"
"You're not trying to play a prank on me right now, are you?"
"Yes? Th-that's impossible. Ms. Jia, why are you acting like that since earlier…"
In an instant, a flash of thought crossed my mind.
Although it varies by individual, a Fervent Follower can influence others in one way or another. For some reason, the [True Name] of a Fervent Follower is treated as extremely important and highly dangerous information.
To confirm my suspicion, I asked Park Donghyun and Kim Junghwan:
"…Raise your hand if you feel something is strange right now."
Neither of them raised their hands.
I then asked Park Donghyun:
"Do you happen to have a photo of that female college student?"
If there was a photo, I could use my ability to verify that female college student's identity. I didn't want to use my ability recklessly without seeking someone else's consent, but in the first place, that crazy bitch doesn't even seem like a human.
"I don't."
"Then describe what that female college student looks like to me, even if it's just roughly."
"Uh… as I said on the broadcast, she is very pretty."
"Is that all? Try to describe her in a little more detail. Height? Weight? Are her boobs big? Is her ass plump? How does she dress? Does she like skirts?"
"I don't really know about things like that…"
Park Donghyun's vague answer was as I expected. He simply perceived the existence of [Female College Student] as just a 'pretty female college student.' Even though his brainwashing was lifted by the grace of the Shining Stars, he didn't even notice that the flow of this conversation was somehow strange.
The important thing is that Kim Junghwan, who was listening to the conversation, was the same.
"Mr. Junghwan. Anything is fine, did you feel anything strange in the conversation just now?"
"No, not at all."
"Then how were you planning to resolve this incident going forward, Mr. Junghwan?"
"I just finished reporting to the chairman a moment ago, but the answer is obvious. We have to suppress them."
"Then we have to catch and crush the female college student who is the culprit of the incident. Am I right?"
"Uh… that seems too extreme. Couldn't that female college student also be a victim like Mr. Park Donghyun here?"
At Kim Junghwan's words, Park Donghyun retorted.
"Th-that's right! Of course, the reason I ended up like this is all because of that female college student, but… st-still, I think we should give her one chance. If the female college student also believes in the Shining Stars, her brainwashing might be lifted like mine…"
Ugh.
Seeing the reactions of these two, it seems even more certain. It's influencing even Kim Junghwan, who has never met the 'female college student' in person.
There's no need to think further. I opened my mouth with conviction.
"That female college student is a Fervent Follower."
My opinion that 'we must catch and crush the female college student' was dismissed. My statement that 'the female college student is a Fervent Follower' was true, and Kim Junghwan confirmed it, but the Association continued to stick to the position that 'the female college student could also be a victim, so we should watch her for now.'
From my perspective, it's so absurd that I'm on the verge of laughing out loud. No, anyone can see that bastard is the culprit. I don't know her face, I don't know her name. All I know is the pronoun 'female college student,' yet no one notices anything strange at all.
…It was a mental attack range on a different dimension. It's embarrassing to even compare it to an anomaly. It was a moment where I realized once again how high-dimensional an existence a Fervent Follower is. I had been looking down on them as weaklings because the Shining Stars had caught them for me with a single click, but that wasn't the case.
Anyway, the Awakened Association seems to have no intention of catching and crushing that [Female College Student]. I'm not a person with a noble heart who is willing to sacrifice my own body to protect humans like other Awakened, but I'm not so lacking in conscience that I can ignore someone who offers people as sacrifices.
Well, in that sense, I had made up my mind to crush that female college student even if I had to do it alone, but—
"Iseul-unnie, are you really going to help me?"
"Then would I be faking it?"
Fortunately, I gained a reliable ally.
"Th-that, I'm asking just in case. Do you think it's right to crush that female college student?"
"Why ask something so obvious? You have to kill and beat up a crazy bitch who offers living people as sacrifices, so are you just going to leave her alone? And, the reactions of the other people are fucking strange, too. Like you said, I think that bastard is definitely a Fervent Follower."
"…*Sob.*"
"Wh-what! Why are you suddenly crying and acting like that!"
I felt like I was isolated alone in a one-eyed village. The moment Yoo Iseul chimed in with my words, tears leaked out before I knew it.
She is an Awakened who is completely immune to 'all mental attacks.'