Volume One, Chapter 41: The Three Leading Theories About the Public Enemy of Allankind

The 'Cardinal' watched Qin Shang digest the information she had just provided and chuckled softly.

"Don't hesitate. Isn't the reason why the 'Trickster' class is a public enemy exactly what you want to know?"

"That is the biggest question in the minds of eighty percent of novice Tricksters!"

"You must have encountered other players in the instance..."

"To have survived, you probably killed them back, right?"

*Killed them back?*

That wasn't exactly the case...

That piece of trash, Justice Eagle, most likely walked out of the instance alive.

Qin Shang thought coldly to himself while maintaining a calm expression, picking up the conversation.

"Actually, I think I know a little about this."

"Is it because other players can complete a hidden task by killing a Trickster?"

"Are players' most primal desires stirred up by the promise of rewards, leading them to push Tricksters into the position of public enemies?"

Upon hearing this, the Cardinal looked at Qin Shang with some surprise.

"It seems you've had quite a bit of contact with other players."

"Most novice players who figure this out likely end up staying in the instance forever; after all, non-Trickster players wouldn't voluntarily tell a Trickster about that hidden task."

"I didn't expect you to make it out alive. You look like a promising seed."

Qin Shang ignored the empty praise and asked with narrowed eyes, "Are there any other reasons?"

The Cardinal nodded.

"Naturally!"

"There are three widely circulated theories among players, all summarized by people in the 'God's Path' game, pieced together from various background clues."

"They aren't necessarily correct, but they are highly probable..."

The Cardinal curled her red lips.

"Have you noticed that many of the class names in God's Path sound like foreign titles?"

"For instance: Trickster, Priest, Physician, Hypnotist, Mechanic, and so on and so forth..."

Qin Shang nodded blankly.

"They do have that foreign flavor!"

To put it bluntly, except for 'Teacher,' all those other professions sound like they were introduced from abroad.

So, were the developers of God's Path foreigners!?

Qin Shang didn't speak his mind, suppressing the thought.

"Have you seen Da Vinci's 'The Last Supper'?"

"The painting depicts the Christian savior, Jesus, having his final meal with his twelve disciples."

"After that meal, Judas betrayed Jesus, the founder of Christianity, as a traitor."

"Every one of his disciples was a member of the Christian faith, each with their own duties; among them were teachers, priests, and physicians."

After speaking, the Cardinal opened and closed her rosy, cherry-like lips, holding a cigarette between two slender fingers and exhaling a puff of sweet-scented secondhand smoke. She said faintly:

"A popular theory is that the reason the developers of God's Path set the Trickster up as a public enemy is because the Trickster corresponds to Judas in 'The Last Supper'."

"Judas, who betrayed the Christian savior Jesus, was a liar."

"A traitorous liar, and therefore condemned by all, reviled by millions."

"So, from the moment you become a Trickster, you must be wary of everyone and forced to lie constantly to protect yourself. That is because Judas was the traitor among the believers, and the Trickster symbolizes that traitor."

Qin Shang's mouth twitched at this.

"Isn't that a bit of a smear campaign?"

I'm not even a Christian. Why should I become a class that is a public enemy just because of that?

"Don't be impatient, I haven't finished yet. There is a second theory: the distribution of character cards corresponds to the underlying personality of the player. For example, a 'Teacher' in modern, semi-official interpretations symbolizes one who imparts knowledge."

"But in the past, this profession symbolized erudition."

"Erudition and a love for learning—the ancient saying 'not ashamed to ask those of lower status' is enough to prove this point."

"Those who receive the 'Teacher' card, though they may look unremarkable, often possess the habit of lifelong learning—they are studious, scholarly, and erudite. This is the foundation of their personality: they are not content with the status quo and study diligently to reach further."

"And so, they become teachers..."

Qin Shang felt a headache coming on, feeling that this theory was no less absurd than reading into things through a distorted lens.

This line of reasoning was akin to seeing a woman dressed in revealing, alluring clothing and immediately insisting she was a fallen woman.

"So, you're going to say it's because of my personality profile? Something about the MAOA gene?"

"Because deep down, I am a person who leans toward violent behavior and 'an eye for an eye,' so I ended up with the Trickster card?"

The 'Cardinal' rolled her eyes at him. The gaze was incredibly enchanting, like a lover acting coyly.

The annoyance Qin Shang felt in his heart vanished in an instant.

However, he immediately regained his clarity and slightly increased the distance between himself and the 'Cardinal.'

This woman was like a perfectly ripe peach, exuding the charm of a mature woman at every moment, as if she could drip with juice if squeezed.

Yet, they hadn't even known each other for half an hour, and she was already casting flirtatious glances his way—the implication was obvious.

He wasn't so conceited as to think it was his handsome appearance or some aura of dominance that had conquered this woman.

The only explanation was that she was like this with everyone.

When dealing with such a siren, one must be extremely cautious.

If you let a single look steal your soul, who knows—she might eat you until not even your bones are left, and you’d still be happily helping her count her money!

The next moment, the 'Cardinal' saw that Qin Shang's expression remained neutral, and she glanced at him with surprise, chuckling lightly:

"Don't be in such a hurry. I haven't finished. The third theory for why the Trickster class is a public enemy is based on player consensus: in confrontation-style instances, the Trickster is often a 'turncoat.' You understand what a turncoat is, right?"

"A traitor!"

Qin Shang nodded. He wasn't exactly from the sticks.

"In confrontation-style instances, a Trickster is often assigned a role where they must not only sabotage the enemy but also their own teammates."

"Often, if you aren't careful, your Trickster teammate will stab you in the back at a critical moment. Who can handle that?"

"This is determined by the class attributes."

"Trickster, Trickster..."

"Just as you guessed, it's just a liar, really. How can a player judged as a liar by the God's Path system ever gain trust and become a teammate worth entrusting your back to?"

Hearing this, Qin Shang finally understood why the Trickster was considered a public enemy to all God's Path players.

To put it simply, the biggest reason is human nature, because the benefits to an ordinary player from killing a Trickster are significant enough.

Secondly, the Trickster class often finds itself on the opposite side of other players within the instances...

"Any other questions?"

The Cardinal didn't rush him, instead giving Qin Shang about three or four minutes to digest what she had just said.

Only then did she continue to ask with a smile.

Qin Shang replied with an "Mm."

His exposure to the God's Path game was shallow, and the Cardinal happened to be a ready-made shortcut for a novice.

Naturally, Qin Shang wouldn't pass up the chance to cram.

"What is the use of the leveling mechanism?"

"And what do the 'Order Stage,' 'Rule Stage,' and 'Law Stage' you mentioned earlier actually mean?"

The Cardinal curled her red lips. "They correspond to levels!"

"As for what levels are for—well, leveling up increases a player's physical fitness in all aspects. Although the Trickster is not a class known for melee combat, as your experience points gradually increase, you will slowly feel the benefits of leveling up."

"For example, the most basic stats: stamina, physical energy, agility, reaction speed, observational skills, and damage resistance. Further up, it involves mental capacity, vitality, resistance, and recovery ability."

Qin Shang was slightly stunned. It sounded quite ordinary!

"So, the improvement in basic physical fitness is quite significant?"

"If a high-level God's Path player were to compete, could their physical fitness crush world-class athletes?"

At this, the 'Cardinal's' mouth twitched.

"Are you dreaming?"

"Do you think the physical fitness of a high-level God's Path player can crush those athletes who have been training hard for decades?"

"How could that be? Many people in sports have developed their cellular activity to the extreme; their metabolic efficiency might not be any worse than that of a high-level God's Path player."

"Furthermore, those athletes have trained step by step, and their control over their far-above-average basic attributes is far superior to that of an ordinary person."

"It's the same principle as giving you a sniper rifle; you might not necessarily beat a professional shooting athlete holding a small pistol."

"They have superior accuracy, precision, anticipation, and reaction speed—all several times better than yours. You think having a superior weapon means you can defeat them? Where in the world would such a good thing happen?"