After Alex used the God mask to change into Clayton, he didn't immediately infiltrate the city; he waited until the sunrise. Following the other priests who had come out for inspection, he successfully infiltrated the city, but a problem arose soon after; it happened when Alex thought of going to the temple.
''Priest Clayton.'' One of the priests called him, so Alex stopped, following Clayton's usual behavior, Alex arrogantly said.
''Yeah, what is it, Paxton?"
The other priests glared at Alex as if they couldn't wait to swallow him; they were from the same faction as the one called Paxton. Paxton stopped them and came closer to Alex; he then whispered into his ears with an air of superiority.
''You know Clayton, you should behave. I got promoted, and you are forbidden to go back to the temple; you will be working with me until I discharge you.''
Because he was pretending Alex must play along and act like Clayton, he put on an angry face and pushed Paxton back, who fell on his butt, shocked by how strong Clayton was (Alex).
''How dare you, who gave the gut to talk to me like that?" The enraged look on Clayton's (Alex) face frightened Paxton and the other priests; they had the same thoughts today. Clayton was fiercer than usual, he was like a beast about to burst, and nobody wanted to be there when this would happen, so naturally, they decided to shift the blame on someone else.
''L.Look, we didn't decide this everything is the supreme priest's will; she was the one that ordered your demotion,'' Paxton explained while covering his face with his arms.
Still playing the role of Clayton, he staggered back, almost falling but managed to control his body; his face was deathly pale; if actors from Earth were present, they would have acclaimed this performance. Paxton and his men were secretly happy seeing Clayton suffering like this but didn't dare to show it on their faces.
''How? Why is this happening?" While Alex was muttering this like a broken marionette inwardly, he cursed at the supreme priest. After infiltrating the city, everything should have been smooth sailing; he would enter the temple where Eri and Maria were being held hostage and rescue them, but just as he entered, this situation was happening almost as if someone knew he was not the real Clayton, if this was true then the enemy is too frightening.
While Alex was lost in thoughts, wondering what the hell was going on? Paxton and his men looked at each other and thought, 'Isn't it because you were too much of a problem child?'
''Sigh! I understand I will follow the supreme priest order. Let's go.''
Unexpectedly Clayton (Alex) accepted his demotion so easily that Paxton rubbed his eyes a couple of times to ensure he was not dreaming. Still, it was not a dream, and because he accepted so easily, the satisfaction Paxton expected feeling upon announcing the news vanished, leaving an empty void behind.
Like a puppet, Paxton guided the group where they should go; it was a basement located southwest of the temple, which was in the middle of the city.
Before they could even enter this basement, they saw a lot of guards and priests outside. Upon seeing so many people, Alex concluded that this basement must be something important to be guarded so heavily. There was nothing about this basement inside Clayton's memories, so Alex was curious, unexpectedly what he might discover would be of great value.
After showing something to the head guards and exchanging a few words with the head priests, Paxton got the authorization to enter the basement. When Alex discovered what they had been keeping in this basement, he almost could not control himself. It was Moon powder, a kind of drug used to control people's mind; it was extremely addictive. No wonder the civilians looked like zombies; the after-effects were terrible; from what he managed to recover from this drug, the one that produced it must be killed. Alex saw what happened to those who failed to ingest the drug after taking it for some time; those people were now bags of bones, neither living nor dead.
''I don't want to end up like them,'' Paxton mumbled as they passed on the cage keeping the fallen as the priests called them.
The more they went, the more Alex found it impossible to control himself; he was not a saint, but what he was currently seeing made his blood boil to an alarming degree. This world must have been created to be like a game, but people living inside it were real, not some data, so seeing people's life being used so cheaply as someone who respected life, he couldn't bear it.
When Alex was about to blow up, someone came running; it was the head priests they left outside.
''Ha! Ha! Ha!"
The old man was out of breath after running to the other side of the big basement. After catching his breath, he looked directly into Clayton's (Alex) eyes.
''Priest Clayton, the Supreme Priest requests your immediate presence.''
''What? Why so suddenly?" Alex asked, still in the role of the lecherous priest hated by everyone.
Shrugging his shoulders, the old man tossed a gray stone at Alex.
''And how should I know? Just take this stone and crush it. It would bring you into the temple. Better not make the supreme priest wait, or else your punishment would be terrible.''
''Tch!" Alex clicked his tongue but still caught the stone. He caressed it; because of his sensitivity to mana, he could feel a massive amount of mana stored inside this stone mixed with something sinister. Immediately upon feeling this sinister aura Silveria who had stayed silent until now, advised him strongly not to use this stone.
〖Master, this a trap you shouldn't use the stone let's wait for a while.〗
Alex's answer was immediate.
'I know it is a trap, but I will still use it.. Say no more.'