Chapter 1: The Strange Church
West Philadelphia.
This was the slums. A place where hope went to die and the streetlights flickered like dying pulses.
In the center of the community stood an old, decrepit building. With a rotting black roof and peeling white walls, it was the only church in the neighborhood.
At this moment, two figures stood in the empty lot in front of the building.
A boy and a girl.
"Jared, are you... sure there's an exorcist here?" Judy Warren brushed a lock of hair behind her ear, looking at the structure with blatant skepticism.
The boy named Jared, a blonde teenager, nodded vigorously.
" This is the place. The officer said the church has a crazy amount of fences out front. Look!"
Jared Sway pointed excitedly.
Judy followed his gaze.
The church was indeed the center of a bizarre fortification. There were four distinct layers of fencing surrounding it.
Strung along the railings, spaced at precise intervals, were small brass bells.
There was only one path leading to the church's main doors. In a straight line, it would have been a walk of merely fifty yards.
But the fences were designed to divert traffic, forcing any visitor to take a winding, serpentine detour, adding unnecessary steps to the journey.
And that specific path had the highest concentration of bells.
Cling... Clang...
Accompanied by the dense, unnerving chiming of bells, the two finally reached the front door.
Jared volunteered to knock.
"Is... is anyone there? We want to commission an exorcist."
Jared tried to project his voice, though he was a scrawny kid who rarely spoke up like this at school.
For a long moment, there was no response.
Meanwhile, behind an inconspicuous window on the second floor of the church.
A single-lens telescope was trained right on them.
"They didn't crash into the fences but chose the designated path. That rules out Zombies."
"They are walking in broad daylight, and their facial muscles are relaxed. That rules out Vampires."
"No reaction when they passed under the holy water dripping from the bells. Probably not Poltergeists."
"No reaction to the icon of the Virgin Mary in the third corridor. Unlikely to be Demons."
...
"In conclusion, these two might actually be human."
Father William lowered the telescope and summarized his findings.
"But their faces are unfamiliar. They aren't on the list of regulars. The locals know my habits; even if they were referring business, they'd send them on Sunday. How did these two find me?"
William narrowed his eyes, deep in thought.
He wasn't originally from this world. He had been pulling an all-nighter editing videos when he suddenly found himself here, occupying the body of a community priest.
At first, William thought he had simply transmigrated to the other side of the Earth.
But after a while, he realized that while the surface of this world looked normal, the underbelly was rotting.
"Masked killers stalking under the moonlight... Mysterious covens of witches..."
He would occasionally see headlines in the newspapers that bore a striking resemblance to the horror movie villains of his previous life.
And as a priest, through his daily community service, William gradually discovered that these things weren't just urban legends or tabloid fodder. They were real.
Since then, to avoid a gruesome death, he had maintained a level of high-functioning paranoia, avoiding any behavior that might be construed as "suicidal" in a horror script.
That was the only reason he was still alive.
Of course, there was one other reason.
William rolled up his sleeves, scooped up a handful of clear water from a wooden basin in front of him, and submerged his eyes in the liquid.
A moment later—
[Cleansing Sight +1]
[Current Progress: Tier 1 (264/1000)]
[Existing Ability: Night Vision. You see more clearly in the dark and can faintly perceive spiritual bodies.]
At the same time, other text floated in his vision.
[Holy Water Consecration]
[Current Progress: Tier 1 (32/100)]
[Existing Ability: Repel. The holy water you dispense contains a trace of sacred power, capable of driving away evil.]
[Psychological Counseling]
...
[Scripture Reading]
...
These were the abilities he had gained after arriving in this world. Only he could see them.
After some experimentation, William understood how it worked.
Simply put, as long as he continued to perform these tasks, the proficiency bar would fill up. Once full, the skill would level up, occasionally granting special perks.
He also noticed that these tasks were highly relevant to the job of a "Priest."
Things like "Chanting Scriptures" or "Dispensing Holy Water."
In such a dangerous world, this ability was undoubtedly a powerful aid.
Although he was the only clergy member in this church, for the sake of survival, William disciplined himself to complete his daily grind.
Originally, he planned to turtle up in the church, reading the Bible until the end of time.
But who would have thought that even in this hellhole, you still had to pay rent?
Aside from the monthly tribute to the Diocese, there was an annual fundraiser, beautifully named "Adding Bricks to the Lord's Mercy."
Therefore, William was forced to expand his business outside the church walls.
Just like now. In order to make the monthly payment due in a week, he wiped his eyes and headed downstairs.
...
Creeeeak.
The heavy church doors groaned open.
Jared saw a priest in black vestments standing there. He was young, with an unexpectedly handsome Asian face.
This was different from what Jared had imagined, and he forgot to speak for a moment.
"May the Lord bless you. Do you seek aid?" William smiled, taking the initiative to greet them.
Jared snapped out of it and stammered, "We... we have a commission."
"Of course. Please, come inside," William stepped aside, gesturing for them to enter.
The moment they stepped over the threshold, William glanced at the top of the door frame.
A crucifix was mounted there, placed at an angle where ordinary people wouldn't notice it upon entry.
Seeing that neither of them burst into flames or hissed, William smiled and closed the door.
Inside the reception room.
"So, please tell me the details of your request," William said as he poured water for the two of them.
"Oh, right... okay." They took the cups.
Jared and Judy looked around curiously. The interior was spartan but clean.
"I'm Jared, and this is my best friend, Judy..."
After introducing themselves, Jared began to explain the details of the job.
They were both students at a nearby school. They had come because of their teacher, Ms. Isa.
"I think Ms. Isa might have encountered an evil spirit!"
When mentioning the evil spirit, genuine worry clouded Jared's face.
According to him, Ms. Isa was a gentle and attentive teacher who had always taken good care of the kids in her class.
But three days ago, she changed.
She wasn't just nervous; she looked perpetually terrified, like a rabbit cornered by a wolf.
"Ms. Isa said that there are people around her smiling... weirdly. Like, really creepy smiles. She's terrified. But neither I nor the other teachers have seen anyone like that."
Jared took a sip of water and continued.
The school had arranged for a doctor, but after an examination, the doctor declared that Ms. Isa was "physically" healthy.
"Nobody believes her, but Judy and I do, right?"
Jared turned to look at the girl beside him.
Judy, with her short bob cut, nodded.
She believed Ms. Isa, not just because the teacher had been kind to her since she transferred, but because of her mother—Lorraine Warren, a famous demonologist and medium.
She had tagged along to the church today out of curiosity.
She wanted to know what other exorcists looked like, aside from her parents.
But seeing this remote, dilapidated church, the reality was far from her imagination.
"So we want to hire you to help Ms. Isa." Jared looked at William with expectation.
Across from them, William appeared to be listening intently.
Hmm, they drank the holy water, and five minutes have passed without any adverse reaction. Confirmed: these two are definitely human.
He nodded internally and released the grip on the crucifix hidden in his pocket.
Only then did he speak. "Your teacher does sound like she is suffering from a spiritual affliction. But before we proceed, I have a question."
He leaned forward, locking eyes with them. "Who introduced you to me?"
Jared paused, surprised by the question.
"Officer Gordon. Two weeks ago, someone in our community committed suicide, and he was in charge of the investigation. He came by again two days ago, and after hearing about Ms. Isa, he recommended you."
"Ah, that guy."
The image of a white police officer with glasses floated into William's mind, and his suspicion dissolved.
"Alright. Do you know my rates?"
"Yes! Ten dollars for an out-call service."
Jared reached into his pocket and pulled out a few crumpled balls of paper.
He flattened them out to reveal four bills: three 1-dollar bills and one 5-dollar bill.
This was money he had been saving for a model kit.
"I lost the two-dollar bill!" Jared looked panicked.
Judy hurriedly checked her pockets, but she didn't have any money on her either.
Looking at the flustered Jared, William shrugged. He swiped the money off the table. "I'll take the case."
"Really?!" Jared's eyes lit up. He had been ready to give up.
"Wait for me at the door. I need to prepare."
William was willing to accept the request not just because he admired Jared's loyalty, or because he needed to pay the church taxes. There was a more important reason.
He looked at the text floating in front of his eyes.
[High-Risk Mission: The Smiler]
[An unclean entity is rampaging through the community. A bizarre, contagious smile is consuming the local residents. As a priest, please stop it before the next smile appears. Otherwise, the curse will continue to spread.]
[Time Remaining: 2 Days]
[Obtainable Item: The Smiler's Mask]