Chapter 2316: Chapter 2317: Truthfulness

"The Witch’s Confession has been activated."

Gazing at the light shield, everyone felt it for a moment. Apart from the mysterious aura enveloping them, there was no other sensation.

At least, at present, they didn’t feel a pressing desire to tell the truth.

Parry Mountains and Leaf Groot also looked around suspiciously, still unsure of the current situation.

Rhein chuckled softly, "Perhaps you still have doubts, so let me give an example."

After Rhein finished speaking, his gaze swept over everyone and finally settled on Angel.

Feeling a bit chilled by Rhein’s gaze, Angel was about to say something to ease his discomfort when Rhein suddenly asked, "Angel, what’s your favorite food?"

As soon as the question was posed, the Priest in the statue began to glow faintly. Shortly after the glow, a sly glint flashed through the kneeling Witch’s eyes.

Meanwhile, in the spotlight, Angel said, "Milk, yes, my favorite food is milk. —— I really wanted to calmly reveal this dietary quirk that I’d kept buried in my heart, but the toes curling in my socks testified to my inner embarrassment and unease."

Before Angel could savor the moment, everyone was already silently: "..."

A few seconds later, Angel’s throat moved slightly, a trace of embarrassment crossing his eyes, yet he said, "Ah??? The first part was fine, but what the heck was that whole section afterward?"

As the question was posed, there was another ripple of light around the Priest and the Witch.

Then Angel spoke again, "Nothing strange. —— Actually, what I meant by ’the first part being fine’ wasn’t entirely true; I just wanted to divert everyone’s attention, so I emphasized the last sentence instead, hoping everyone wouldn’t focus on my fondness for milk. I’m such a clever little trickster; surely no one will notice such a subtle ploy, hehehe."

Everyone: "..." Truly a subtle ploy, hehehe.

Angel too went hehehe... what a joke! Feeling as if struck by lightning, his previously upright posture now wobbled, forcing him to take several steps backward.

"That just now was..." Angel initially intended to say more, but recalling how his mouth failed to shut before, he opted to seal it, converting his embarrassment into seething anger as he glared at the statue.

By now, the statue had changed ever so slightly from before.

The Priest looked even more solemn and sacred, while the kneeling Witch appeared less reverent, with a hint more cunning.

Angel gazed towards Rhein, questioning with his eyes: Why is this happening, why am I speaking my thoughts out loud?

Rhein seemed about to say something, but upon seeing Angel holding back, pretending to be angrily questioning, and recalling Angel’s previously incongruous internal monologue, he couldn’t help but burst into laughter.

Observing Rhein’s reaction, Angel silently shifted his gaze to Sanders.

Sanders didn’t laugh, but merely gave Angel a light glance before turning away. In places Angel couldn’t see, his shoulders shook slightly.

At that moment, Dangross climbed onto Angel’s shoulder and, in a comforting tone, whispered into his ear, "Although I don’t know what milk is, I won’t mock Mr. Pat."

Angel’s words squeezed through his clenched teeth, "Saying nothing would be the greatest comfort you could offer me."

Finished speaking, Angel hung his head in full shame, not wanting to see anyone else’s reaction. Anyway, Rhein would explain why this was happening, no matter what.

The atmosphere on site was somewhat lively because of Angel’s outburst, yet it also carried a mysterious awkwardness.

After laughing, Rhein finally regained his normal tone and, after coughing twice, said, "You’ve all seen the effect — this ’Witch’s Confession’ can make people speak the truth. But it has a slight side effect of also revealing internal thoughts."

Angel silently grumbled in his heart: This isn’t just a side effect, this is far worse than speaking the truth!

Despite his intense embarrassment and anger, when Angel calmed himself and thought it over, he realized this so-called "side effect" was the true essence of this mysterious object.

Because, truth has never been absolute.

Just like contracts in plain sight could have loopholes; it’s how countless contracts spanned millennia and underwent numerous revisions.

The truth works the same way; it might appear true, but loopholes exist.

For example, when someone asks a question, you might tell half the truth while the more crucial truth lies hidden, and then lead others with other truths to mentally fill in some self-conjured scenario, which often turns out false.

Their mental fill-ins are their own doing, the speaker’s words were true, but the end result is unsatisfactory.

So, the truth can have many loopholes.

And this mysterious object, the Witch’s Confession, not only makes you speak the truth but also brings out your inner words, psychological activities, and hidden thoughts.

This isn’t a "side effect"; it ensures the truth is as true as possible.

However, those who overthink should refrain from using it, as it can easily lower their standing. For example, Angel.

Upon understanding the specific effects of the mysterious object, it clarified Angel’s previous doubts on why Rhein emphasized its "near-loophole-free truth" effect, which indeed proved accurate.

Angel initially dismissed it, thinking the existence of the "truth spell" might render this mysterious object a bit redundant.

But now, it’s apparent that it truly holds value, far surpassing the effects of the truth spell. After all, the truth spell also falls prey to an abundance of supposedly "true" loopholes.

After listening to Rhein’s account, Parry Mountains couldn’t help but marvel, "Amazing, amazing, amazing, amazing~ So magical, is this a mysterious object?"

As soon as Parry Mountains finished speaking, the statue showed another anomaly.

Immediately after, Parry Mountains unknowingly opened his mouth, "Yes, this is a mysterious object. —— By the way, before these powerful human wizards, should I showcase my verbal tics? I should, after all, a unique image can be molded through verbal tics, as stated in Mr. Feng’s narrative ’Soliloquy of the Clown’."

As soon as Parry Mountains finished speaking, his eyes widened, exclaiming, "Just now I..."

Originally, Parry Mountains wanted to say: What nonsense did I say just now?!

But recalling that the Witch’s Confession was still active, he quickly clammed up, wary of revealing more inner thoughts.

However, Parry Mountains, thinking he could cut his losses, hadn’t anticipated other unforeseen occurrences on site.

On Angel’s cloak, Dangross slowly extended half a palm, curiously looking at Parry Mountains, "So your ’ahahaha’ laughter is just a quirk? Isn’t that how you actually laugh?"

As soon as the question was posed, the Priest lowered his head silently, while the Witch flashed a sly smile.

Parry Mountains: "Of course, it’s a quirk. —— A genuine laugh could never produce such bizarre sounds; only odd quirks can catch people’s attention!"

Parry Mountains sorrowfully used a branch to cover his mouth, his eyes filled with wooden patterns glaring at Dangross, signaling with his gaze: Don’t ask, don’t ask anymore!

Nevertheless, Dangross clearly didn’t catch his signal and continued to ask on his own accord, "I see, you want to draw attention?"

Parry Mountains: "Yes, especially attracting Lady Nami Midori’s attention! – But you already know my usual phrase, should I change it? ’Lulu lulu lulu’ feels good, it should match well with Lady Nami Midori’s hissing sound."

Everyone: "..." Nami Midori’s hissing sound is because it’s the sound of her flicking her tongue, it’s not a habitual phrase!

Dangross: "I feel ’lulu lulu lulu’ is a bit..."

Dangross hadn’t finished speaking when a strange force field enveloped them. He wanted to speak, but this force field made it impossible to open his mouth.

The one releasing the force field was Rhein. He smiled slightly: "Silence field, the effect is to silence. I think if we continue letting you ask questions, it might hurt feelings, so it’s better not to speak temporarily."

Had it been before, everyone would have been indifferent. But now with Rhein releasing the silence field, it was exactly what everyone wanted.

Even the seemingly calm and wise Leaf Groot secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Just now, he had been holding his breath, not daring to make a sound for fear of revealing some hidden psychological activities. Now with the silence field enforcing silence, he felt relieved.

The air was tranquil. Even the sound of the wind and the rustle of shifting sands were absorbed by the silence field. In this wilderness, the only sounds were Rhein’s breathing and his voice.

"I haven’t finished speaking yet. Once I finish explaining the ’Witch’s Confession’ rules, we can continue chatting."

Everyone nodded.

Rhein smiled and continued: "The first rule, as previously mentioned, the Witch’s Confession will make you speak the truth, and it will also reveal the mental activities while you speak, which can prevent loopholes in the truth to the greatest extent. Even if you know this mechanism, it’s hard to avoid."

Rhein turned to Angel: "Angel, what is your favorite food?"

As the statue began to glow, the silence field around Angel was instantly lifted.

Angel blurted out, "Milk. — My mind is tranquil, dark... empty... there’s nothing."

Angel looked dumbfounded: "..." Why use me as an example again?!

Rhein turned to everyone: "See? Angel, after knowing the effects of this mysterious object, voluntarily adjusted his mental activity, appearing to avoid his psychological activity. But if you think carefully, such avoidance actually raises more suspicion and gains less trust."

Rhein continued: "The second rule is the triggering rule. Although I have been speaking, I have not triggered the Witch’s Confession, and the reason is simple, I believe you’ve already guessed it."

"Yes, only a question can trigger the Witch’s Confession."

Throughout, although Rhein was speaking, he didn’t ask any questions. This is the fundamental reason he didn’t trigger the mysterious object.

"Questions also come in different situations. When asking, if there is a specific person being asked, then the person asked answers. Just like earlier, I asked Angel, and Angel answered; Dangross asked Parry Mountains, and Parry Mountains answered."

"When there is no specific person being asked, then it becomes a self-directed question. Since it’s self-questioning, it is surely self-answering."

"Both Angel and Parry Mountains triggered this mechanism because they asked without a specific directed target, so it turned into self-questioning and self-answering."

This rule of questioning, everyone had already experienced before, and understood it instantly.

After understanding this rule, everyone silently thought to themselves: Once the Witch’s Confession is activated, never ask non-specific questions... Otherwise, the outcome of self-questioning and self-answering is self-harm.

Rhein: "The third rule is probably the one you’re most concerned about."

"How do you not answer a question?"

No sooner had he finished asking than the statue emitted a series of lights.

But Rhein, the one who posed the question, wore a smile and said nothing. Even though the mysterious object had been activated, he didn’t utter a single word.

As everyone was puzzled, Rhein revealed the secret of this rule: "When your inner self strongly resists the question, then you won’t answer... Of course, you still can’t lie, but you’ll remain silent."

"Also, if the question involves extremely important private matters, and the subconscious displays strong resistance, it can also refuse."

"Like this."

Rhein paused here, clearly intending to give an example. His gaze swept over everyone and finally settled on Angel.

Angel’s eyes widened, shaking his head in a vehement refusal: No!

Rhein seemed to receive Angel’s rejection signal, his gaze slightly shifted to Angel’s side: "Lobal’s tail head, how do you evaluate your main head and secondary head?"

Everyone looked at Lobal’s tail head, including the main head and the secondary head.

However, despite the sudden, unprepared question, Lobal did not blurt out an answer like the others before but remained silent.

Clearly, Lobal’s tail head strongly resisted this question subconsciously.

Rhein: "See, this is how it is. When you consciously resist answering, or subconsciously resist answering, then it won’t take effect."

The reason Angel and Parry Mountains answered readily before is that they didn’t yet know this rule and thus had no conscious resistance.

And "Angel’s favorite food – milk," although this question might make Angel a bit embarrassed, it wasn’t so private as to have his subconscious resist answering. Therefore, it was answered so accurately when asked.

Rhein: "Alright, these are the three major rules of the Witch’s Confession."

...

The three major rules create the Witch’s Confession.

The most notable of which is the third rule. Without this rule, the Witch’s Confession would be infinitely more powerful.

Because it is possible through questioning to uncover the deepest secrets hidden in others’ hearts, even privacy, can all be obtained. This is a rather terrifying effect.

Unfortunately, with the restriction of the rules, even surprise questioning, as long as the subconscious resists answering, still cannot retrieve answers.

This directly reduces the effect by ninety percent.

However, the third rule, while limiting its effect, makes the Witch’s Confession the best mysterious object for "sincerity", "mutual trust", and "contracts".

When the Witch’s Confession is activated, you either answer truthfully or remain silent, without exploiting loopholes in the truth, allowing both parties to confront each other honestly and understand each other’s boundaries.

In summary, perhaps the Witch’s Confession is not an exceptionally powerful mysterious object, but it has specific applicable scenarios.

And at this time used in the Tidal World, increasing mutual trust between both parties, it is absolutely the most suitable mysterious object.

From this, it can also be seen that Rhein came to the Tidal World with great sincerity this time.

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