After rescuing Monica, Nora was sent to the manor for treatment. The Sirens had suffered some serious injuries as well, but under the influence of the Symbiotic Contract, they had already mostly recovered.
Nora had unexpectedly become the only injured one.
Fortunately, she had come well-prepared.
Not only was she wearing the thickest glacial heavy armor, but she had also layered chainmail underneath it.
This was the kind of protection one would wear when charging into battle.
She had originally thought she would be facing a group of cultists, so she had also taken several secret medicines from the Church in advance.
Although she had been in quite a dire situation during the battle, her injuries were not too severe.
She had merely overexerted herself and needed rest.
But she did not want to stay for even a moment longer. Thinking of the refugees wandering along the noble territories’ borders to escape the White scourge, she was eager to return to the Northlands.
So, after a simple bandage, she planned to leave in a hurry and bring the good news back to the Northlands.
However, Hughes stopped her. He had too many doubts regarding the matter of pollution.
"What exactly is pollution? Why has it persisted for over a thousand years, yet people still live on the sea? And why were the Sirens affected by the pollution instead?"
Hughes had wanted to ask this question for a long time. Now that Nora was about to leave, he had to get a clear answer.
Hearing this topic, Nora’s expression became somewhat complicated.
"You must have noticed by now, the Church deliberately conceals knowledge about the extraordinary world. Whether it is the Silent Sanctum or your Candlelight Church, this is an unspoken rule among all churches."
Hughes nodded. The Church’s secrecy regarding supernatural powers was absolute.
Even though he had descended into this world multiple times, he had found no traces of the extraordinary, to the point that he had begun doubting himself.
"This is actually a form of protection."
"Yes. Pollution is a very peculiar existence. It has one particularly counterintuitive trait, you will not be polluted if you are unaware of its existence."
Hughes’ mouth fell open in shock.
"Fishermen at sea do not know about pollution, so they have no problems when they come into contact with the ocean. The same applies to traveling merchants and sailors."
"But once they become aware of it, they get polluted?"
Hughes slumped into the armchair, his face full of shock.
So this was the truth!?
"Unbelievable, absolutely unbelievable. Why is it ?"
"That, I do not know. The Church only told me this fact. As for the exact reason, I know as little as you do."
"Wait, something’s not right. The Sirens didn’t know about the pollution in the sea either, did they? They discovered it on their own—"
Hughes suddenly froze.
He vaguely remembered that Ash had once told him in the manor’s basement that they had heard about the pollution in the Abyssal Trench.
Hughes sighed. If only they had never known.
Nora seemed to guess what he was thinking and shook her head. "It’s useless. Once one steps into the extraordinary, they will inevitably discover the existence of pollution—it is only a matter of time."
"So only mortals can avoid pollution through ’ignorance’?"
"Yes. Supernatural beings have heightened senses that often allow them to perceive things they should not. My type, a [Burier], is relatively fortunate. The [Secret Keeper] of the Candlelight Emblem, however, often hear various whispers filled with forbidden knowledge. Even if they do nothing, they might still get polluted."
So extraordinary abilities came with such risks? Hughes was astonished, this exceeded his expectations.
"I am not considered an extraordinary being yet, am I?"
He hesitated. He had signed multiple contracts with the Sirens, gained many supernatural perceptions, and even entered the Abyss.
Perhaps he was already an extraordinary existence?
Nora snorted in amusement. "Do you think extraordinary beings are like your Empire’s fourteen-grade official rankings? Do you think you can steadily advance in level, like a promotion system?"
Hughes’ eyes widened. "I can’t?"
He had really thought that beyond the Burier, there would be levels like Sky Burial Practitioner, Earth Burial Practitioner, and even God Burial Practitioner, culminating in some kind of peak grandmaster realm.
Nora sneered, grabbed Hughes’ hand, and pressed it against her chest.
It felt cold. Through the Symbiotic Contract, he could tell that this was a living, flesh-and-blood body.
What was wrong with it?
But gradually, Hughes’ eyes widened in shock as he looked at Nora.
"You can feel it now, can’t you?"
"Yes." Nora pointed to the bandage on her temple. "No heartbeat, yet blood still flows. Do you know how long my lifespan is?—No need to guess, I’ll tell you directly."
"And this is just one of the most trivial traits of a Burier."
"Now, do you understand what an extraordinary being is?"
"An extraordinary being is not simply a more powerful human, it is an entirely different form of life."
Hughes sat in the armchair, his pupils trembling slightly.
He had never expected the extraordinary to be so… different.
Thinking back, there had been multiple times in battle when Nora had been sent flying by Monica’s attacks, impacts that would have been fatal to Hughes, even if he had gone through multiple reincarnations. And that was with her armor on.
Armor could only protect against sharp weapons, offering little defense against immense blunt force.
Yet Nora had merely bled a little. She had walked back to the manor with him, unaided.
Moreover, without a heartbeat, how did her body even function?
These questions barely crossed his mind before he gave up on thinking about them.
Perhaps physics no longer applied.
Nora’s gaze darkened slightly, as if recalling something.
"Anyway, you are still a mortal, and that is not necessarily a bad thing."
"Do you have any other questions?"
Hughes took a deep breath, thought for a moment, and asked, "Why did Monica’s pollution suddenly erupt?"
He had been wanting to ask this for a long time. What was supposed to be an ordinary treatment had somehow turned into a battle.
"Ah, that. It’s actually related to what I mentioned earlier, ’those who do not know are not polluted.’ By the way, we usually refer to this as the [Cognitive Barrier]."
"[Cognitive Barrier]?"
"Yes. As the name implies, a barrier of cognition. The less one knows, the stronger the [Cognitive Barrier]."