Endless Debt-Chapter 958 - 55: Anxiety and Envy (Part 2)

Hart, Kemp, Shelley—three members of the Sixth Group stood guard at the entrance, preventing anyone from noticing the peculiarities here. If caught in a pincer attack, their position would become highly passive.

Bologue and Palmer escorted Church further into the rock formation.

"Your Secret Energy is really useful," Palmer’s voice echoed in Bologue’s mind. Since entering the rock formation, they had been using Whistle to communicate. He suggested, "Ever considered working as a tunneling machine, helping to dig some subways?"

Bologue replied coldly, "According to the regulations, Extraordinary and mundane worlds must be kept separate."

Extraordinary Power can be used not only in wars of mutual destruction, but when used properly, it becomes a productive force to revolutionize the world. However, no one knows what kind of chaos such a revolution could bring, not to mention the existence of Devils, which are unsettling.

All along, whether it’s the Rhine Alliance or the Kagader Empire, or any force related to the Extraordinary, they silently abide by the separation between Extraordinary and mundane worlds.

Issues of the mundane world are resolved by the mundane, while the Extraordinary destroys the matters of the supernatural.

In Bologue’s heart, there’s an impending sense of crisis. He knows that regulations are made to be broken, and no one knows how long such tacit agreements will last. And the boundaries have become increasingly blurred due to recent Extraordinary conflicts. Coupled with the rising Ether concentration, an envisaged, extremely chaotic dark era is just around the corner.

Halting this instinctual exhaustion, Bologue focused on the matter at hand. Excavating rock with the power of the mundane world is an exceedingly troublesome task. As the excavation deepened, the rock’s composition also changed, but none of this hindered Bologue.

"Church, is there something you’re hiding from us?"

Bologue’s voice resonated in Church’s mind. Without the Heart Core Net, Whistle allowed one-on-one communication, and Palmer was unaware of their secret dialogue.

Church replied, "What do you mean?"

"I know your Secret Energy; you can change your appearance and form to infiltrate enemy’s ranks. But such power seems somewhat feeble."

Bologue continued, "Even a sufficiently intricate Alchemy Armament or, in fact, just some makeup skills can achieve the same."

"So what?"

"Therefore, judging solely by such Secret Energy, your infiltration methods seem very basic and risky, yet you’re highly regarded."

Bologue recalled the Wind Source Highlands experience, and comparing it to now, in both incidents, Bologue seemed to lead the development, but actually Church was the true protagonist, executing the true orders hidden beneath the surface.

"Why? Church, why are you entrusted with such important tasks?"

A cyan gaze brushed over Church’s face—it was an unfamiliar face.

"Just because of the Faceless Man’s power?"

Church was expressionless, Whistle conveyed, "Sorry, I can’t reveal too much."

"Not wanting to reveal, because you’re deceiving us?"

"Why would you think that?"

"Simple deduction, that’s all. Just changing faces or appearances isn’t enough to shoulder such responsibilities," Bologue said, "You must possess other powers unknown to others, even unknown to Palmer, right?"

"Perhaps," Church remained extremely composed, "So... Team Leader, are you beginning to doubt your team members?"

"No, I’m not doubting you; I’m just curious."

Bologue’s voice softened, he continued, "I mentioned this to you, Church. I always felt you’re a very peculiar person."

"In what way peculiar?"

"You’re too mysterious, not quite real."

Bologue dug through the rock, the excavated waste penetrated the wall, then crystallized on the rock surface like sharp-edged crystalline structures.

"No one knows your true face, and no one knows your past... We know too little about you, to the extent that, given your role as an intelligence officer, I sometimes suspect whether the name Church is also disguised."

"No, the name Church is real."

Church said, "I need something real."

"You’ve been hiding behind disguises for too long; are you starting to fear exposing your true self?" Bologue pressed on, "Like Afeiya?"

Church said, "Team Leader, I think discussing personal matters during work hours is unnecessary."

"Sorry, I was just probing you, since I’m curious about you, curious about your uniqueness."

"This is pointless."

"Why?"

Church paused, in the pitch-black tunnel, there were only pairs of dim, faintly glowing eyes. Under Ethereal Concealment, the Ether reactions of the trio compressed to the extreme.

Church said, "Because you’ll forget."

Bologue keenly caught the critical information in Church’s words, "I guess this is not a kind of ’expression’, but a fact, right?"

"Probably."

"Alright."

Bologue didn’t further press Church, since Church showed strong resistance, there was no need to cling to his privacy. Bologue was simply curious and wanted to pass the time in these tedious moments.

The dead silence of advancement continued for a while longer until Bologue stopped when he encountered something.

Bologue whispered, "We’re here."

The dispersed Ether encountered resistive rejection, Bologue’s first stint as a miner was quite successful. He touched the area protected by the Void Realm, and without triggering its vigilance, Bologue expanded his Secret Energy to penetrate the Void Realm.

```