Episode 6. Bigger Prey (1)
A few days later, Gebel went to check on the mousetrap for the first time in a while and was greatly surprised.
Inside the barrel were as many as ten mice.
Gebel had known for the past few days that the number of mice being caught was decreasing. It was because mice quickly learned which was bait and which was a trap.
'Did Isaac neglect to empty the barrel, so it filled up with mice?'
At first, Gebel thought so, but he soon realized the trap's form had changed slightly. Just as he was examining what had changed, Isaac happened to walk into the warehouse.
"Ah, you're here? Wow, I emptied it yesterday, but it filled up again so quickly."
"You emptied it yesterday?"
"Yes. If I leave them together, they eat each other quickly, so I've been emptying it frequently."
Gebel couldn't understand how so many mice were being caught. Only a very small part of the mousetrap had changed. Gebel looked at the rod stretching across the center of the barrel and the lump of grain tied in the middle with a sour smell, and asked.
"Did you install this?"
"Ah, yes. I thought if I modified it a bit, it would catch more."
The part Isaac had modified was simple. He had just installed a rod across the middle of the greased barrel. When Gebel touched the rod, it spun around loosely.
Isaac continued his explanation.
"It's simple. Until now, the mice had to jump into the barrel and take a risk to get food, and once bait fell to the bottom, no more mice would be lured in."
"But if bait is attached to this loose rod, they charge at it, slip, and fall to the bottom. The bait never falls, and since trapped mice in danger aren't visible, other mice are easily lured in too."
Isaac nodded. Mice preferred grain over things like cheese or meat. Thanks to knowing that they went crazy for the scent of slightly sour grain, making the trap had been easy.
"Hah."
Gebel smiled, pulling up the corners of his mouth. Isaac was slightly surprised to see him smile, as he had been expressionless. But the surprises didn't end there.
"Not bad."
It was brief praise. But Isaac could tell it was the highest praise Gebel was capable of giving.
Gebel was truly surprised.
Isaac's idea was simple, but more important than that was Isaac's attitude. A fourteen-year-old boy who was already working hard wasn't merely content with helping out but was striving to do even better.
That was enough to raise Gebel's assessment of Isaac by yet another level.
"You've done something so commendable, it wouldn't feel right to let this pass with empty words. I shall give you a gift."
Then Gebel brought up an unexpected subject.
Isaac had done it simply because he wanted to, so he was surprised by Gebel's offer. He was about to modestly refuse when he realized this was another chance to score points.
"Then might I ask for some candles?"
"Candles?"
"Yes. I'd like candles I can use in my room. The time I can spend in the chapel is too short, so I don't have enough time to read books."
The miracle of lighting candles was child's play for the monks, but the candles themselves were expensive. That was why they hardly used anything except the lamp burning in the center of the room. But Isaac still had much to read and learn about. If he had personal candles, his time for reading books would increase.
But Gebel shook his head.
"I'm sorry, but candles won't do. There's a fire hazard too, so I don't think anything but the lamps Brother Alex manages will be permitted."
Isaac feigned slight disappointment though he wasn't truly disappointed.
For now, making Gebel feel indebted to him was enough. But Gebel seemed to have no intention of letting it go just like that, and took something out from inside his coat.
"I'll give you this instead."
Isaac's eyes sparkled.
What Gebel took out was a metallic necklace in the shape of a sun. It was crudely tied to a sturdy cord, but it emitted a faint light as if it were no ordinary object.
"It's a Luminous Stone (光輝石) necklace engraved with a miracle by the Abbot himself. Rub it and it will glow, then gradually fade. Strike it hard and the light grows stronger, but it will die out faster. The miracle's lifespan will shorten too."
When Isaac looked closely at the necklace, his eyes began to tingle and something appeared.
「Luminous Stone (Rare)」
「An ore imbued with the miracle of the Codex of Light. It emits light according to the amount of shock it absorbs.」
It was exactly the same status window he had seen in the Nameless Chaos. Ordinary items didn't display such windows; it seemed they only appeared for items of Rare grade or higher.
'An object imbued with a miracle.'
It was a treasure incomparable to candles that posed a fire hazard or could go out at any moment. If sold on the market, it would fetch about a month's living expenses for an average household.
Isaac worried that the reward was excessive compared to what he had done. He was grateful for the favor, but excessive favor was something to be wary of.
"It's too great a gift..."
"It doesn't matter, since it's an item nearing the end of its lifespan anyway. Probably about half a year left. I can just get another one from the Abbot."
Gebel hadn't simply decided to give it on a whim either. He had already heard that Isaac liked books and had planned to give it to him, with his evaluation of Isaac already high. This incident merely provided the right occasion.
Realizing it wasn't an excessively burdensome item, Isaac gratefully accepted it.
"Thank you. I gratefully accept!"
***
'This is pretty good.'
Isaac thought as he tested the Luminous Stone he had received from Gebel. When Isaac rubbed it, it gave off a moderate light, and when he tapped it, it grew steadily brighter.
'If I hit it hard, it would probably shine bright enough to be like a flashbang.'
Of course, doing so would rapidly shorten the Luminous Stone's lifespan, so he had no intention of doing that.
Because of the unexpected gift, Isaac instead fell into worry about what to do.
If he had received candles instead, he would have gladly kept them lit all night, but this was far too valuable an item and could be stolen.
Children at this age were basically liars, thieves, and would-be assailants by nature. This was all the more true for orphans who lacked many things.
'Maybe later if I find a replacement, but not now.'
Isaac had too much work to waste his nerves on trivial matters.
Even though catching mice had become much easier, Gebel's workload never decreased. Winter was approaching, and he had begun tackling miscellaneous tasks he hadn't been able to handle because of the mouse-catching.
Tasks like chopping wood, cleaning paths, clearing the latrines, or moving winter supplies from the village into the warehouse. They were inconspicuous tasks, but Gebel was an indispensable presence at the monastery.
'Without Gebel, these helpless monks would probably freeze or starve to death within a month.'
Yet Gebel didn't even receive wages, silently supporting the monks so they could focus solely on their ascetic practices.
'Why?'
Among the children, rumors circulated that Gebel was a deserter, but Isaac knew he was a Paladin. With his record of having participated in war, he would clearly be welcomed anywhere he went.
'Some sort of atonement journey?'
Isaac found that plausible too. Perhaps he had laid down his sword for the comrades he had left on the battlefield. However, Isaac intended to make him take up the sword again.
'How can I make him reveal his true colors...'
***
Isaac saw a mouse scurrying across the corner of the warehouse. The moment he reflexively thought he should catch it, his left hand reacted as if snapping out.
To be precise, the tentacle reacted.
The tentacle that shot out from his palm pierced the mouse in an instant.
'I've gotten used to it now.'
Crunch, crunch. Isaac watched the tentacle devour the mouse.
'And this guy... has definitely gotten faster and craftier.'
Both its length and thickness had clearly increased. Until now, the tentacle had extended at most from fingertips to elbow. But now it stretched nearly two meters, piercing the mouse's neck in an instant. It even predicted the mouse's movement path to take the optimal route.
Changes were occurring in Isaac as well. The moment he saw the mouse, even though he had never caught one directly before, he felt certain he 'could catch it.' It was as if the tentacle had naturally become his own limb.
'Thanks to sufficient nutrient intake?'
Isaac interpreted it positively.
Isaac tried pulling out the tentacle experimentally. The red tentacle squeezing through the thin gap between his wrist and palm wriggled at about the length of a finger joint. Isaac confirmed that he could clench and unclench these tentacles and use them like fingers.
Whether thanks to the reward or simply because he had grown accustomed, the movements controlling the tentacles felt far more natural.
It was still clear that the tentacles moved by another ego, not himself. But in any case, that ego clearly moved in a direction favorable and beneficial to him.
'It might be time to eat something other than mice.'
It wasn't because he was tired of mice. He couldn't taste in the first place. Rather, it was because he had gained various perks from eating mice, and he wondered if similar perks would apply to other animals.
[The Nameless Chaos is watching you.]
[The Nameless Chaos wishes you to find 'bigger prey.']
[The reward of Chaos awaits you.]
Isaac was startled by the message that descended almost the moment he thought of it.
'Is it reading my thoughts?'
Isaac reflexively recalled all the curses and insults he had hurled at the Nameless Chaos until now.
'Seeing as it hasn't said anything, it either has a large capacity or doesn't care in the first place.'
But in this poor monastery, there wasn't much to be found that could be called 'bigger prey.' Perhaps the old donkey in the stable, Murzik, or perhaps the monks.
Of course, Isaac had no intention of touching any of them. Even if they were corpses.
But opportunity came faster than Isaac had thought.
***
As more time passed, Isaac came to realize that this world was not fundamentally very different from the one he had originally lived in.
"Hey, Yorhan. Come with me."
Labor hours.
It was a time valued as much as prayer and scripture study, but it was also the only time when the monks' supervision grew lax. Yorhan, who had been digging potatoes beside Isaac, hesitantly got up and followed the voice calling him.
They were older boys than Isaac.
Isaac stared intently at those dragging Yorhan away. Hans, sixteen years old, was the oldest among the orphans at the monastery. The boy looked around as if gauging his surroundings, then locked eyes with Isaac.
The boy flinched the moment he saw Isaac and averted his gaze.
That appearance seemed quite strange to Isaac. For boys of this age, physique and age were no different from rank. Isaac had a pretty, almost delicate appearance rather than a masculine one, and his build was slight compared to his peers.
Of course, Isaac, a mentally fully mature adult, wouldn't submit just because children threatened him. Even so, it was strange for Hans to tuck his tail first like that. Especially in an orphanage like this.
Yorhan and Hans's group disappeared behind the monastery. Isaac watched their retreating figures intently, then let out a sigh.
'It's none of my business, but...'
Yorhan, who slept in the bed next to him, was the only child with whom Isaac had exchanged even a few words. Reporting to the monks was meaningless. What children feared was peer violence more than adults.
Isaac turned his steps toward where they had disappeared.