Episode 14. Proof of Faith (2)
It seemed his answer had been the right one. Isaac replied with quiet relief.
“Thank you, Abbot.”
Yebhar watched Isaac, who answered so humbly. Could he truly be a Holy Vessel? Whether he was or not, it was clear he was no ordinary being. Yebhar kept in mind the possibility—remote though it was—that a very cunning demon had hidden itself within the monastery.
Yebhar was a cautious man. He had seen countless cases of revered heroes concealing wicked inner natures.
The Immortal Emperor Beshek had once been one of the bishops of the Codex of Light. Kalsen Milter had been a hero of the order destined for the rank of Radiant Archangel. There were even those who had become Radiant Archangels of other faiths in exchange for renouncing their own.
*O Codex of Light, please forgive me for testing You.*
Yebhar decided to test one last thing.
He slowly brought his finger toward the space between Isaac’s brows. Isaac stared blankly at the fingertip, having no idea what he was doing.
[Nameless Chaos gazes upon you.]
[Nameless Chaos warns you.]
[Nameless Chaos issues a stern warning to you.]
*What?*
Isaac was startled by the sudden warnings and tried to pull his head back. But Yebhar, as if he had expected this, grabbed Isaac by the nape and pressed his finger firmly between Isaac’s brows.
In that instant, a blinding flash erupted.
The flash, more than enough to blanket the entire monastery, stretched out with such brilliance that it could be seen beyond the mountains, over the horizon.
The light only died down after quite some time.
Isaac sat sprawled on his back, staring ahead with a blank face. The smell of burning hung in the air. Only then did Isaac startle and touch his forehead where Yebhar had pressed. But only a dark mark remained; there was not a single wound.
“Remarkable, Isaac.”
Then a weary voice came from ahead. Yebhar wore a tired expression as he clutched his wrist. Below his wrist was nowhere to be seen; only a charred black trace remained.
“I wonder if I am truly qualified to teach you anything….”
Yebhar promptly collapsed in a faint. Behind the bewildered Isaac came the voices of monks and Gebel rushing over in haste.
***
After carrying Yebhar to his bedroom, Isaac told Gebel what had happened. Gebel let out a short sigh upon hearing that a flash had erupted the moment Yebhar pressed Isaac’s forehead.
“The Proof of Faith?”
“Yes. The Abbot wanted to confirm one last time whether your faith was genuine.”
Gebel continued with a grave expression.
“The Proof of Faith is a miracle that pushes the flesh into Heaven to verify faith. If one’s faith is shallow, they receive burns. That is why its use is forbidden except by high priests and inquisitors.”
Isaac realized that what had happened to Yebhar’s wrist could have befallen him and gasped in horror.
*So that’s why Nameless Chaos warned me so urgently?*
Isaac grimaced.
“The Abbot almost killed me?”
“The Abbot has used that miracle fewer than three times in his entire life. And if he was convinced the other person would be gravely injured, he wouldn’t have used it at all. Hearing your answers, he must have gained a certain confidence.”
Not that there was any way he could have known that.
Isaac hid his inner thoughts and clicked his tongue in annoyance.
“But in the end, I was unharmed, and it was the Abbot who lost his wrist. Why did that happen?”
Gebel also seemed rather bothered by this.
“Well… in the Proof of Faith, if the target’s faith is far greater than the caster’s, the caster receives the burns instead. It returns honestly proportional to that gap.”
Isaac’s mouth fell open in bewilderment. He thought he finally understood why the other monks and Gebel were looking at him with such strange eyes. In other words, in a contest of faith against the Abbot, Isaac had won a crushing victory.
*If this were a martial arts novel, it would be like a newly enrolled disciple defeating the sect leader in a contest of internal energy.*
Isaac was bewildered at how this fact might spread, but he took comfort in that his connection to Nameless Chaos had not been exposed. Rather, since his ‘piety’ had now been made public, there would be almost no one who doubted him.
*No, this is actually good. Since I’ve been officially certified for my piety, even if I’m caught with tentacles, it gives me room to make excuses.*
Iszac thought he understood how he had achieved such a crushing victory over the Abbot.
As he had confirmed, the Codex of Light was ultimately common knowledge of physics. To Isaac, a modern man, it was as obvious as the fact that the Earth was round and the moon existed.
That was a faith that could not be shaken from the very beginning.
Because an obvious fact is no different from absolute faith.
On the other hand, Yebhar lived in a world where countless gods existed and innumerable legends and superstitions were intertwined. It was certain that he held devout faith, but there was inevitably a difference in the intensity of that faith.
The slightest doubt that he might possibly be wrong was something that inevitably existed.
In the end, that difference resulted in Yebhar’s wrist being blown away.
“His wrist will grow back, won’t it?”
There were high-ranking clergy who could perform miracles to restore severed limbs. Given his position, the Abbot should have been able to receive such a miracle.
But Gebel shook his head.
“No… since it is a hand taken by a miracle, it will be difficult. It is a hand seized by the Codex of Light; It would not give it back.”
Isaac clicked his tongue inwardly.
He was glad his innocence had been proven. But since he had inadvertently blown off the Abbot’s wrist, he couldn’t be sure if this would turn out to be a gain or a loss.
***
It was a full week later when Isaac met Yebhar again.
“Hello, Abbot.”
Yebhar was waiting for him in the abbot’s office. He stood with his back to the sunlit window, so his expression was hard to see. But as expected, his wrist had apparently not healed; a stump of a right hand was wrapped in bandages.
“I’m sorry, Abbot. I….”
“Sorry?”
“Your wrist….”
“Ah, this. It is nothing. I undertook this prepared to some extent.”
Yebhar walked away from the window and looked at Isaac with a benevolent smile.
“No, rather, I should consider myself fortunate that it ended with just one wrist. I am taking this as a revelation left by the Codex of Light that there is still work for me to do.”
In truth, when Yebhar had tested Isaac’s faith, he had been prepared to burn to death entirely. If Isaac was an existence akin to a divine messenger, such an outcome would not have been strange. But the fact that only a single wrist had been blown off was, to him, a kind of revelation.
*It must mean I am to live and guide Isaac’s growth.*
Isaac, unaware of Yebhar’s thoughts, looked at him uneasily.
“We spoke before about prayers.”
“Ah, yes. I have memorized a little more over the past week. And….”
“There is no need. You do not have to memorize them.”
“Yes?”
Yebhar continued with serene detachment, as if having attained enlightenment.
“Those lacking in faith wander in search of God’s word and chase after the reason for the world’s existence. But you already act on behalf of God’s word by your very existence. Your words shall become prayers, and your songs shall become hymns—what use is there in memorizing books by rote?”
Isaac felt dazed and bewildered.
Why on earth was he suddenly evaluating him so highly? Was it because of the ‘Proof of Faith’?
But Yebhar, perhaps feeling no need to explain further, took out several books.
This was precisely why Yebhar had waited a full week to call for Isaac.
“I heard from Gebel that you wish to become a paladin.”
“Ah, yes.”
“These are books compiling the miracles, prayers, and hymns necessary to become a paladin. They will serve as reference. If they do not suffice, I shall teach you myself.”
Isaac looked at the books in surprise. Unlike ordinary books read in the library, these sturdily bound hardcovers contained the miracles used by the Codex of Light and the origins of those miracles.
The moment Isaac touched a book, his vision flickered and message windows appeared.
[Book: Prayer Book of Ash and Ember (Rare)]
[Miracle: You can learn Flame. You can ignite flames ranging from small candles to large swords.]
[Score: Hymn of Saint Arte (Rare)]
[Hymn: You can learn the Hymn of Valor. Suppresses emotional turmoil and enables one to exert greater strength. The hymn’s effects increase with the number of singers.]
[Score: Hymn of the Lamp and the Moth (Rare)]
[Hymn: You can learn Lamp. Creates a light source that drives away darkness. Reduces the defense of enemies belonging to darkness. The hymn’s effects increase with the number of singers.]
Along with these were various minor prayer books.
None were particularly high-grade, but as expected of essential learnings for paladins, they were highly practical. Isaac realized that these description windows did not appear for all items, but only for objects imbued with miraculous or magical power.
“You do not yet hold a position, so I cannot show you high-ranking miracles as I please. Moreover, the monastery does not possess many books….”
“Not at all! This will be a great help.”
Isaac spoke with genuine gratitude. The fact that Yebhar now completely trusted him was a great gain, but he had not expected to learn miracles as well.
Hymns that manifested miracles circulated only within the order, making them priceless. Even if one somehow acquired them, a person without status in the order would have to explain how they obtained them and why they had not returned them; they were things an ordinary person could hardly even see.
Yebhar smiled, seeming satisfied with Isaac’s humble demeanor.
“Your faith is beyond doubt, but it will take considerable time before you can actually manifest miracles. Do not be impatient; if you gradually understand the stories and teachings of the saints, you will soon see results.”
Isaac nodded.
***
Gebel’s stamina training was simple.
You carried something heavy and ran without question.
Since most basic stamina comes from aerobic exercise, Isaac followed without complaint.
However, one could glimpse Gebel’s practicality in the fact that this ‘heavy load’ meant moving heavy oak firewood bundles from the yard to the storehouse.
But Gebel seemed to think that wasn’t enough and kept talking to Isaac as he ran.
“The Abbot gave you books?”
“Huff, huff. Yes.”
The books received from Yebhar were all kept in the library. He couldn’t keep them in a room with other children. Brother Alec, having apparently received word beforehand, cleared a shelf for him. It was a space that could even be locked to prevent others from touching them.
“What books did you get?”
“Hymns, huff, and, prayers. Huff, huff.”
Isaac answered diligently, dripping sweat. The backyard wasn’t particularly large, but running with a bundle of firewood wrapped around him left him breathless to the point of death after just five laps.
Never before had Isaac resented the Nephilim race’s abysmal stamina as much as he did now.
This was something even tentacles couldn’t help with.
Gebel let out a short, hollow laugh upon hearing the list of books from Isaac.
“Well, well. It seems the Abbot is truly determined to push you to become a paladin.”
“Is that so?”
“Of course. Even squires of the paladin order have trouble receiving this level of support. This is treatment only second sons of wealthy nobles could hope for….”
There were almost no firstborn sons among paladins. This was because second and third sons, who could not inherit their houses, mostly became wandering knights or devoted themselves to the order.
There were even households that didn’t properly support their second or third sons; for Isaac, an orphan, to receive such treatment was an unbelievably huge benefit.
“It’s all thanks to you, Mr. Gebel, putting in a good word for me, huff, puff!”
“Enough.”
Isaac staggered a few more steps before setting the firewood bundle on the ground.
He had thought his stamina had improved quite a bit, but the dense oak firewood bundle was heavy enough to be nearly half his body weight. His slender arms and legs trembled.
He was on the verge of tasting blood in his mouth, but Isaac welcomed this physical pain instead.
*Finally, I feel like I’m doing a proper workout.*