Joe was confused. One might think that this is normal for him, given his otherworldly companions. This is not the case. While he was ignorant of many subjects and generally lacked awareness of all types, he was rarely truly confused. When confronted with something he couldn't understand, he either understood it quickly, or he quickly categorized it as a "complicated thing that gave me a headache" and stopped thinking about it. However, this particular topic is something he needs to hold firmly, not for himself, but for Maggie's sake.

"Say that again, please?"

"I accidentally started a cult," she repeated.

"yes, well, the second time doesn't make much sense. Wait a minute, I'll be up right away. ”

A filthy little hallway and a bunch of brain-dead little hooligans aren't the perfect place to have this conversation. Joe quickly pushed the trolley that Chefs was sitting in into the elevator and returned to the apartment as fast as he could. He left the robot butler in the foyer and rushed into the bedroom to find Maggie, just as he had left - she was floating in place, her snake-like hair disheveled. The only noticeable change was that the expression on her face changed from a calm smile to worry.

"Where is the cult?" The man immediately asked. "How did you accidentally start a fire?!"

The girl frowned.

"I'm just keeping it short. More precisely, cults emerged as a result of my activities without my direct involvement or intent. ”

"Oh. So that's ...... Happened to you?"

"That's another way to put it, yes."

"Then why don't you just say it?"

"I love to see the way you look confused. It's lovely. ”

She allowed herself to let out a mischievous giggle, and though it only lasted for a moment, her worries returned.

"This is a most unpopular development other than humor. My agreement with the Occult Expulsion Agency requires that I do not organize, encourage, or participate in any organized worship of my existence. ”

"Wait a minute," Jo motioned for her to stop. "Worship what? I've never seen any guy in a robe singing strange chants in the dark room around here. Well, not since I met you. ”

"The person you just accosted was part of that," she revealed.

"But you took care of them, didn't you?"

"A small part of it," she added. "By my estimate, there are about 120,000 members, and it's growing rapidly."

Joe's eyes widened. Forget about cults, so many followers may be enough to form a religion.

"When the hell did this happen and how did it happen?" His voice was hoarse. "You didn't notice either!" I mean, you've noticed everything!"

"Joe, please. I'm not omniscient. While my knowledge and insight are superior by your standards, they cover only a small part of your universe in the grand scheme of things. If I don't know how to look, even things that are in my sight will escape my attention. ”

"Okay, I'm sorry." He immediately felt that he shouldn't raise his voice. "It's just that being so careless doesn't look like your style."

"Definitely. This oversight is the most worrying. Given my knowledge of human nature, I should have foreseen this, but I chose personal satisfaction over vigilance. ”

Maggie sighed heavily.

"I knew I was supposed to shoot that highlight."

Only at this point did Joe finally grasp the nature of this "cult", with the girl's coil twisting.

"Wait, is it about your fan club?"

"Yes."

"This is not a cult. It's a fan club," he said, pointing to the obvious.

"My research clearly shows that fan clubs and cults are synonymous based on their activities."

"How do you know?"

"They are made up of impressionable individuals who worship entities they barely understand, trying to fill in some perceptual voids in their lives."

"Hmm...... Do you mean to say that they are a group of lonely guys who have nothing else to do but have a crush on some cute girl online?"

"They also created statues that idolized and revered the objects they worshipped."

"Who the hell is it?"

The girl nodded to the electronic picture frame hanging from the bed, and the reassuring cyber smile of the mechanical Elizabeth II was instantly replaced by a digital artist's interpretation of Maggie. This is definitely what some consider to be "idolization", especially in the hips, waist, and chest.

"That's just a dream," Joe shook his head. "People will draw anything for fun."

"They also sacrificed their personal wealth and possessions without asking for anything in return."

"Like donations or something?" That's only once!"

"They believe that non-believers are also persecuted disproportionately, illegally, and often violently."

"That...... Okay, okay, I'll give you that. ”

Whenever someone says bad things about Melinda Sparkstad online, Joe himself gets inexplicably angry and confrontational. This bad habit disappeared the day Maggie entered his life. In fact, recalling his behavior at the time, he realized that the girl, as usual, might have a point. He doesn't fully believe that fan clubs are just a socially acceptable form of cult, but his name is not on the contract. If his recent court experience is anything to suggest, the highly technical terms and conditions are easier to interpret than one might think. Director Millington is definitely the kind of cunning person who wants to take advantage of the situation, so Maggie's concern is right.

"But if it's an accident, does it count?" He tried a different angle. "I mean, you just said, without you, it all happened. They can't blame you for that, can they?"

"Intentionality does not exempt you from negligence," she said bluntly.

Maggie could have done a lot to hide herself and prevent this from happening. From the start, she was able to use a psionic perception filter that made her almost invisible to those who didn't realize her. Alternatively, she can simply choose a less conspicuous container. Or, she might have removed all the content related to her from those damn message boards before they became part of the public consciousness. Last but not least, if she hadn't dragged the trial out to satisfy her curiosity, there wouldn't have been a viral video that exploded her popularity overnight.

"I've decided it's my fault," Maggie frowned at Joe. "As much as I know you mean well, I'd appreciate it if you stopped trying to find a way for me to evade responsibility."

"But it's not your fault!"

"Isn't it?" If Officer Maloney accidentally hits an innocent bystander while shooting at a gunman, you definitely want him to be held accountable. ”

"I ...... I think I will," Joe finally relented. "So, what now?" Are we going to break up the fan club?"

"That would be meaningless. Going back to my previous analogy, removing a bullet from a bystander does not undo the mistake in Officer Maloney's behavior. ”

"Hey!" Agent Johnson suddenly walked to the door. "I don't know what the hell you're up to, but stop saying bad things about Grant"

She wasn't eavesdropping on purpose, but Joe hadn't closed the bedroom door when he rushed in earlier, and neither of them really had an "indoor sound". AJ tries not to bother with the argument, but when she overhears Maggs mention her new boyfriend, she can't help but listen positively. Over the past week, third-graders have made the most of their absence, spending most of their time with the police. In fact, things got quite serious. AJ's outburst just now is enough to prove it. Normally she would try to avoid getting involved in the eccentric couple's affair, but she didn't hesitate to rush into the room and yell just to protect Maloney's reputation. Of course, she immediately realized afterwards how rude and out of place she was, but it was too late to pull out now. In addition, she has a feeling that no matter what happens, she is not completely unconcerned.

"What the hell is going on?" AJ asked.

"Well," Joe scratched his head, "to make a long story short, Maggie's fan club is so big that it's basically a cult, and her contract says she shouldn't have one." ”

"Oh. So...... Does that mean the entire agreement is now null and void?"

"Yes, there are a few other things." The girl confirmed.

"Nonsense."

Agent Johnson didn't like the news at all. If the contract is terminated, then her current assignment will also be terminated. Although she was reserved at first, she gradually fell in love with the strange life of her third-grade roommate. Of course, she knew that the relationship couldn't last forever, but ending it so abruptly gave her a bad taste in her mouth. His relationship with Ma Hongsheng is also just getting better. AJ really didn't want to leave, but once she was ordered to leave, she couldn't refuse.

"Does this have anything to do with your highlights?"

"You saw that too, didn't you?" Joe shouted.

"Well, yes. It went viral. Frankly, I'd be more surprised if you found someone here who hasn't seen it...... Wait a minute...... Where did that thing come from?"

"Huh?"

video. I mean, you two didn't make it, did you?"

Neither of them was vain enough to post their footage for everyone to see. In fact, Joe probably did it for the sake of laughter, but even then, the thing was too well done to be his masterpiece. Or any man's. Without high-quality, near-professional editing, this video wouldn't be so popular.

"Of course not," he also admitted. "It was Mr. Charles who spelled it."

"No, he didn't," AJ asserted firmly.

"You...... Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. My team surveyed all the people Maggs had come into contact with when he first arrived. Mr. Charles did not have the know-how to manufacture such a product. Not to mention that it wasn't posted under his account. ”

"But...... Who did it?" How did it come so fast?"

Joe and Sara stared blankly at each other for a few moments before they came to the same conclusion. Glancing at Maggie, a pair of alien eyes quickly appeared in her curly hair, confirming that she not only understood, but was actively investigating. Sure enough, after a quick and thorough investigation, she confirmed that the occult expulsion agency had orchestrated the whole thing. Of course, they had done their best to cover their tracks, but once the Observer knew what it was looking for, nothing escaped its gaze.

The reason for doing so isn't obvious, but AJ can make an educated guess. Having worked under Millington for many years, she knew better than anyone else in the room what that expired mayonnaise looked like. It is likely that he intends to use this artificial violation to void the contract, and then use it as a bargaining chip to renegotiate a new agreement that is more favorable to him. This greedy guy isn't just playing with fire. Trying to deceive a Level 3 cosmic entity is like playing with an armed nuclear warhead. While Agent Johnson wants to see him get the punishment he deserves, the realization that Maggs actually has the power to make her feel a pang of panic.

"Let's not be in a hurry now, shall we?" She urged the multi-eyed entity. "You can't just kill Millington because he's a jerk"

"I couldn't agree more," Maggie said calmly. "Such harsh retaliation is neither warranted nor necessary."

"What? Why? ! Psionic suddenly got angry. "That two-faced bastard is trying to lie to you! You can at least knock his teeth out!"

"And do you want him to get hurt?" Joe muttered that she was indecisive.

"You're mistaken, Agent Johnson. Director Millington's attempted wilful breach and breach of the contract violated Section 13-B. I will seek appropriate compensation as provided for in our agreement, but dissolution is not included. ”

"Oh. Yes, it is. "Psionic calms down." What kind of compensation?"

"According to my unbiased and objective estimates, this problem can be solved by transferring an OS-64-M 'Silver Storm' orbital space shuttle to my personal name."

"Wang!" AJ shouted, her face contorted into a malicious satisfaction. "Hit his pockets, he won't like it. Not at all. ”

"Definitely. Such a purchase would put pressure on him, and the budget of the paranormal expulsion agency should serve as an adequate punishment for such violations. ”

"What if he refuses to pay?"

Joe's questions were mostly wishful thinking, as he had a feeling that whatever Maggie was going to do with that nice shuttle, he would be dragged in, and that could involve space travel.

"It was stupid for him to do this," the girl said confidently. "Especially after I almost determined the cause of the instability of space within the territory of the third largest British Empire."

She needed to conduct a series of experiments and observations on the wormhole generator to be completely sure, but Maggie was fairly sure that the cause had to do with the radiated gases involved in the device's operation. British ships emitted these gases into space immediately after the jump, while American ships were authorized to store them for recovery. The law in question was implemented out of economic considerations rather than environmental considerations. Most of the United Republic of the Transcosmic Americas had much more interstellar traffic than the British Empire, the third largest country, but at the same time, there were fewer sources of fuel and raw materials needed to maintain this high level of transportation. In short, they don't have the luxury of dumping the aforementioned gases like the British, hence why recycling regulations were in place hundreds of years ago.

To the best of Maggie's knowledge, this is the most obvious difference between 3BE and American cargo ships, and therefore most likely the cause of increased space erosion in the UK.

"Director Millington would be very eager to get the news, even if it costs him twelve million pounds," the girl added with a smile.

"Well, the important thing is that everything will return to normal." Joe changed the subject.

AJ laughed and added, "Or at least as normal as this madhouse."

"I want to thank you in particular, Agent Johnson." Maggie turned to the psyker. "Your insight has not wrongly led me to believe that I have violated my obligations."

"Don't worry. Just write a few more sentences in your future report. Anyway, I had to write a sternly worded letter to Millington. ”

In British culture, it's a polite way to put it, meaning she's going to scold him so hard that it could amount to a war crime.

"None of this," Maggie turned to Joe after AJ left, "My unofficially sanctioned cult is preparing a large ritual that includes a human sacrifice. I'm going to attend, and I'd appreciate it if you could come with me. ”

“…… Please tell me you're talking about an open-air barbecue in the park tomorrow. ”

He vaguely remembered seeing a big topic about it on a message board earlier.

"Yes, that's what I mean."

"Are you sure it's a good idea?" I mean, I doubt they'll react better to me around you than those maniacs in the basement. ”

"Sooner or later we have to face this organization, and this is a great opportunity."

Joe narrowed her eyes at the thin saliva that flowed from the corners of her mouth.

"They're going to have organic burgers, aren't they?"

"Yes, they'll have organic burgers."

The man sighed.

"Listen, I'll let Karen get you some, but let's not piss off those nerds unless we have to, okay?"

"It's allowed."

Joe breathed a sigh of relief. He's been punched today, and frankly, he'll not be excited again for at least a week.