Paladin of the Dead God
chapter-17

The word ‘Inquisitor’ sent a chill down Isaac’s spine, tensing him up. It was certainly not a good sign.

‘Inquisitors? Why would they come here?’

“Why would the Inquisitors suddenly decide to visit?” Gebel asked, his expression hardening. The tension was evident in him too.

Inquisitors were like internal affairs agents within the order. It was only natural they were unwelcome since their role was to find threats within, rather than outside, the order.

Evhar glanced at Isaac, hesitating to speak, suggesting the matter was sensitive. Isaac caught the hint and discreetly stepped back, but as soon as he turned the corner, he quickly extended a tentacle from his left hand.

[Rat in the Wall / Share senses through the tentacle.]

Isaac had used this power to eavesdrop on secrets and whispers throughout the monastery. It was necessary, given he harbored secrets that couldn’t be discovered.

“The message doesn’t specify why they’re visiting. Just that it’s urgent.”

Evhar showed Gebel the letter brought by the carrion crow. The scrawled note was brief:

“Urgent. Threat present. Seal the monastery and stand guard immediately.”

The message was short, its exact meaning unclear. Gebel repeatedly murmured, trying to understand. It was clear that a threat was present in the monastery, and the Inquisitors were coming to deal with it.

But what exactly was this ‘threat’?

Evhar looked at Gebel with worry in his eyes.

“What will you do, Gebel?”

“If the monastery itself was under suspicion of heresy, they wouldn’t have sent a crow. It seems like the threat has infiltrated or is approaching the monastery. The monks should be safe, I suppose.”

Isaac felt a chill running down his spine as he heard this.

‘…Is it about me?’

Up to now, Isaac hadn’t done anything against the teachings of the Codex of Light or done anything that could expose his relationship with the Nameless Chaos. However, the mere fact of possessing tentacles was evidence against him in the eyes of the order.

If, by some chance, the order had become aware of Isaac’s existence, it would be natural to send the Inquisitors to confirm it.

Gebel looked uncomfortable, but still calmly advised Evhar.

“If I avoid them now, it might look more suspicious. Let’s welcome the Inquisitors as planned.”

***

‘What to do?’

The news of the Inquisitors’ visit threw the monastery into a state of unrest. The children stopped all work and returned to their rooms, and the monastery gates were firmly shut. They would remain closed until the Inquisitors arrived.

Isaac was deep in thought.

He had considered such a situation hundreds of times, preparing for it. If he were to be suspected or forced to flee, he would have no choice but to escape. He didn’t want to kill and devour everyone in the monastery.

Therefore, he had hidden supplies in the cave where he was almost eaten by the wild boar, preparing for this ‘just in case’ – clothes for disguise and essentials for life on the run.

If the order had somehow discovered his existence and sent the Inquisitors, he would have to flee immediately.

‘To escape, I can leave right now. I can get food through the tentacles, and thanks to the Flesh Storage ability, I can survive days without sleep or food…’

He had learned everything he could from the monastery.

His body had grown as much as it would, and Gebel had said he had taught him all he could about swordsmanship. Miracles were still a weak point, but that might be insurmountable as long as he had the tentacles.

If he left now, joining a knight order on the frontier might offer him a decent position.

But the uncertainty of whether the Inquisitors were coming for him was the problem. What if they weren’t coming for him, and he fled? What if they thought, ‘Wait, is this kid hiding something? We should have a more thorough conversation.’?

‘This is why I hate inspectors.’

Their mere presence causes all sorts of unsettling thoughts, making their visit stressful.

Isaac finally decided to wait until the Inquisitors arrived and then make a decision.

‘If they point me out and come looking for me, then I’ll flee.’

He already knew the monastery’s layout and the geography of the mountains well. Secretly slipping away was not difficult, especially with the help of his tentacles.

What would come after that, though, was the issue.

Isaac, feeling uneasy about his planned Paladin training possibly falling through, stepped outside.

Then he saw someone approaching from the dark corridor.

It was Gebel.

Gebel looked the same as usual, but there was something different about him.

“Isaac? What’s wrong?”

“The atmosphere in the monastery

is weird. Couldn’t just sit still.”

“Hmm, indeed. The monks are not in the best spirits. They’re all gathered in the chapel praying. Their faith is unquestionable, but… Inquisitors are known for fabricating crimes where there are none.”

Gebel didn’t seem too fond of the Inquisitors. Isaac suddenly remembered the rumors that Gebel was a deserter. No one was openly questioning it, but perhaps he was also accused of apostasy or heresy.

‘Ah, so that’s why the Head asked Gebel what to do?’

From the Head’s perspective, he was dealing with two secrets concerning Isaac and Gebel, so it was understandable he felt uneasy. Nonetheless, Isaac was grateful for the protection he had been given.

A loud howling of wolves echoed from outside the monastery. Recently, the sound of wolves had been getting closer.

“Those damned beasts are howling again.”

“Maybe they’re running out of food?”

“Might be. The mountain ranger said recently there’s been a noticeable decrease in animals in the mountains…”

Isaac internally winced.

He had been hunting animals near the monastery to feed his tentacles. The local dangerous animals were almost entirely devoured by his tentacles, halting their growth, but it had been a significant foundation for Isaac’s development.

‘But it shouldn’t have impacted the ecosystem that much.’

“Might have to go hunting soon, visit the village too. Can’t let the path between the monastery and the village become dangerous.”

“Yes.”

Isaac could read Gebel’s agitation, despite his calm façade, and realized that Gebel, too, was contemplating fleeing from the Inquisitors.

‘What happened in the Avalanche Paladin Order that made him live in hiding like this?’

“Isaac. About our conversation earlier today…”

Gebel spoke as if reading Isaac’s thoughts, causing Isaac to startle but then nod in response.

“You might have guessed by now… I had an ulterior motive in teaching you swordsmanship. I was certain that one day you would be able to kill someone on my behalf. Someone I’m currently unable to kill…”

Gebel’s eyes blazed as he stared into the void before continuing.

“The demise of the Avalanche Paladin Order originated from that person. Everyone else died on the battlefield, and I was the only one who fled and survived.”

“…”

“That’s why I want you to carry out my personal vendetta. I’m sorry.”

So, Gebel’s reason for training Isaac was to entrust him with his revenge.

However, Isaac was indifferent to this revelation. He had approached Gebel first to learn swordsmanship, and their interests just happened to align. In fact, if Gebel had not had someone he wanted revenge upon, he might not have taught Isaac swordsmanship.

“Killing someone as a fee for swordsmanship lessons? Sure, consider it done. You said I’d eventually meet them, so no need for me to go looking.”

Gebel was taken aback by Isaac’s response, then chuckled and shook his head.

“…I can’t believe you passed the Head of the Monastery’s ‘Test of Faith’. You hardly look like a devout believer.”

“You’re one to talk.”

They shared a conspiratorial laugh together.

Once their laughter subsided, Isaac and Gebel silently looked out the window. The Inquisitors were expected before evening, but it was already getting late into the night. Even accounting for the early sunset in winter, it was unusually late.

Perhaps they would arrive in the morning. Isaac hoped they would come as late as possible.

Thud, thud, thud, thud!

That’s when they heard it. A loud banging noise came from the monastery’s main gate.

‘Are they finally here? Sooner than expected.’

Gebel’s expression hardened as he headed towards the gate. But since they had locked it following the Inquisitor’s instructions, it took a while to open.

The banging noise continued relentlessly.

“Is anyone there?! Please, open the door!”

“Hans? Isn’t that you, Hans? What’s going on?”

“Gebel!”

The person pounding on the door turned out to be Hans, who had become an adult and joined a blacksmith’s shop in the village. Hearing the commotion, other monks rushed to assist Gebel in unlocking and opening the door. As soon as it opened, Hans, panting heavily, collapsed inside.

“Hans!”

He was covered in blood, his body full of wounds. Luckily, most seemed to be from falling or scraping rather than life-threatening injuries.

“What happened? Were you attacked?”

“Attack, by wolves…”

Gebel’s face turned grim. He had already been concerned about the unusual behavior of the wolves, and now a human had been attacked. But why Hans had encountered wolves on his way to the monastery at night was a mystery, until he urgently spoke.

“The Inquisitors! The Inquisitors are in danger!”

***

Isaac and Gebel were now hastily running along the mountain path.

They were the only ones who could potentially save the Inquisitors, who might be in danger, facing off against wolves.

‘The Inquisitors had asked for guidance.’

Isaac recalled what Hans had said.

Working in the blacksmith’s shop, Hans was requested by the Inquisitors to guide them to the monastery. Though he was uneasy about the Inquisitors, as a faithful who grew up in the monastery, he couldn’t refuse and complied.

But on their way, a pack of wolves suddenly surrounded and attacked them. Such an incident had never occurred before, leaving Hans in shock. However, the Inquisitors managed to create an escape route for Hans, instructing him to seek help from the monastery.

Hans had thus run nearly half a day through the mountains to reach the monastery.

‘He saved Hans and stayed behind…’

Isaac, who had preconceptions about the Inquisitors, felt slightly guilty. But that didn’t mean the Inquisitors weren’t a threat.

‘Or maybe, if they just got attacked and eaten by the wolves?’

Whether they came for Isaac or another threat, if the Inquisitors were to be killed by wolves, it would solve his problems.

“Huff… huff…”

Isaac soon felt breathless.

Among the things that didn’t improve due to his cursed blood was his lung capacity.

Although he had received the advanced sword skill ‘Omen’ from Gebel, he hadn’t yet had the chance to practice it properly. But perhaps he might need to risk using the skill right away in battle.

Yet, using it recklessly with his body already strained from running could lead to severe injury.

This was another reason why Isaac needed to develop his own advanced skills.

Though his physique had improved with growing muscles, he would need to be as fit as Gebel, able to sprint through the mountains at night effortlessly, to use advanced sword skills without strain.

Seeing Isaac start to lag, Gebel glanced back understandingly and then sped ahead. Isaac looked up at the sky, worrying he might arrive too late to be of any help.

Caw!

A carrion crow was flying low in the sky. Isaac recognized it as the same crow that had visited the monastery. The intelligent bird was likely trying to lead them to its master.

Confident that Gebel wouldn’t look back, Isaac pulled out a tentacle. The low-flying crow was swiftly impaled by the thin tentacle.

Isaac hesitated for a moment. Killing the crow would mean failing to find the Inquisitors.

But he eventually activated his ability.

[Parasite from Beyond / Implants a short-lived parasite under the skin of the target touched by the tentacle. The infected target experiences continuous pain.]

A worm-like tentacle crawled into the crow’s body, quickly seizing and dominating its nervous system.

It was one of the abilities Isaac had obtained from the Nameless Chaos. Although intended to inflict pain, Isaac knew it could be used in other ways.

Isaac then activated the ‘Rat in the Wall’ ability.

[Rat in the Wall / Share senses through the tentacle.]

Instantly, the crow’s view from the sky was shared with Isaac. He could immediately pinpoint the location of the Inquisitors.