Chapter 19. The Plague God (1)
“Talk about timing.”
With the Nameless Chaos whispering in his ear, Isaac carefully scooped up the inquisitor. They needed to haul her to the monastery pronto, and for that, Gebel needed to wrap up his showdown in a jiffy.
Isaac tiptoed closer to the battleground where Gebel and the bear were locking horns, taking the scenic route to sneak up on the action from behind.
Boom, boom!
Even from afar, the ground-shaking ruckus was hard to ignore. Up close, the gigantic bear loomed even larger – like a truck on steroids.
“At least it’s not a speed demon.”
Whether due to its chunky size or its wounds, the bear was sluggish, stuck in a slow dance as it squared off against Gebel. Isaac gently placed the inquisitor down and slipped closer to the bear’s blind spot.
“Isaac?!”
Gebel’s eyebrows shot up at Isaac’s approach, but he didn’t miss a beat. Sword at the ready, Isaac lunged in with his trademark move, a thrust he’d practiced ad nauseam for the past couple of years.
Growl! The bear, a bit slow on the uptake about Isaac’s sneak attack, tried to turn the tables, but Gebel seized the opportunity Isaac had created.
Gebel charged forward, aiming right for the bear’s neck. Despite the bear already tussling fiercely with Gebel, it knew deep down that Gebel was the bigger threat – even if instincts said otherwise.
Don’t lose track of Isaac, alright?
Isaac, on the other hand, aimed for the less deadly lower half. Caught between two instincts, the bear couldn’t make up its mind and just thrashed around like crazy.
Bang! Sparks flew as the bear blocked Gebel’s sword with its claws, but that move cost it a hand, torn to shreds by the clash. Gebel didn’t hold back; he sliced deep across the bear’s neck.
At the same time, Isaac’s sword pierced the bear’s hindquarters in a fast thrust that almost seemed to stop the wind itself. The delayed breeze tousled the bear’s fur.
Something wasn’t right.
“Silly creature.”
After stabbing the sword, Isaac quickly shoved a tentacle into the wound. The tentacle tore through the tough hide, delving into the bear’s insides and reaching its heart in no time. Isaac could feel the bear’s heart pounding like crazy through the tentacle.
He grabbed the heart, as big as a human head, with his tentacle and crushed it, absorbing the energy.
Grrrr… The giant bear groaned strangely, struggling.
Surprised by the bear’s odd reaction, Gebel didn’t waste a moment. He swiftly swung his sword, nearly severing the thick neck. The tentacle had already devoured the bear’s heart rapidly. Blood spurted from the neck as the bear collapsed with a loud thud.
[‘Plague Giant Bear’ consumed.]
[‘Dead God’s intestines’ perk boosts absorption efficiency.]
[‘Temporary Superhuman Strength’ perk gained.]
[Disease resistance spikes.]
[The blessing lasts until digestion.]
‘Superhuman strength?’ Isaac was puzzled by the new perk but didn’t dwell on it. With the dust settling, Gebel rushed over.
“Isaac! You good?”
“Yep. That last move was a game-changer, I think.”
Gebel glanced at the fallen giant bear with disgust.
“I’ve been around this monastery for ages and never seen such a wild beast. Like something out of the boonies… Wonder where it came from.”
“Want to dissect it?”
“Nah, looks diseased, not edible, can’t haul it. Best to leave it here. I’ll ask the abbot to purify the area. Darn inquisitor making us sweat this much.”
“That ‘darn’ is actually a ‘she.’”
Whether ‘he’ or ‘she,’ it was ironic that the duo most anxious about the inquisitor ended up saving her.
Gebel seemed taken aback by the inquisitor being a woman but didn’t dwell on it.
Eyeing the inquisitor on the ground warily, he suggested, “Let’s keep her alive for now.”
***
Isaac opted to carry the inquisitor. Thanks to the perk from devouring the giant bear, her weight felt almost nonexistent. He wasn’t even out of breath.
His HP, drained from using the advanced sword move ‘Prelude,’ seemed to have recovered, making him feel at ease.
Gebel couldn’t believe his eyes as Isaac, who used to struggle after a few sword swings, effortlessly climbed the mountain with the armored inquisitor on his back. But he didn’t think much of it.
Isaac’s peculiar energy levels were nothing new to Gebel.
Muttering to himself, Gebel said, “Youth is a powerhouse.”
Isaac still had the energy to check the reward from the chaotic events.
[The nameless chaos is totally stoked about your recent consumption! 🌀]
[A little gift from the chaos is coming your way! 🎁]
[Alright, choose one of these rad rewards:
1. The Cleaner of Other Worlds: Now you can summon tentacles from both hands. 🦑
2. The Caller from the Abyss: Cast illusions on your enemies to slow them down. 😈
3. Offspring of Chaos: Transform into a monstrous creature with the ‘Parasite from Beyond’. 🦠]
‘I haven’t had to pick a reward in ages,’ Isaac thought, grinning.
Isaac had picked up some pretty wild abilities like ‘Flesh Storage’, ‘Parasite from Beyond’, and ‘Rat in the Wall’ from his tentacles. He turned down some quests from the nameless chaos because they were just too crazy or impossible to pull off in the monastery.
For Isaac, life was more about increasing his physical stamina than developing dangerous tentacle powers.
‘These abilities aren’t too flashy this time,’ he mused.
The possibility of choosing ‘The Cleaner of Other Worlds’ didn’t seem as scary anymore. He’d mastered hiding his tentacles over the years.
‘The Caller from the Abyss’ was a sneaky move that could mess up enemies without revealing his tentacles. Perfect for staying incognito.
‘Offspring of Chaos’ was next-level monster mayhem. It could wreck foes but was pretty unmistakable. Isaac knew it was a risky pick.
After some thought, Isaac went with ‘Offspring of Chaos’.
‘The crow has been coming in clutch,’ he thought. Having a lookout like the crow was super handy in a battle.
He also needed to keep an eye on the inquisitor. It could be leverage if things went south. Self-preservation was key.
In the end, Isaac went for the ‘Offspring of Chaos’.
The tentacle in his left hand soaked up the new power. Isaac could sense the potential for chaos brewing within the crow.
‘Not yet,’ he thought.
He didn’t want to risk the inquisitor catching him red-handed with the crow. There were plenty of rats around for experiments anyway.
When Isaac and Gebel reached the monastery, the monks welcomed them eagerly. The monastery glowed with light, a sign of their dedication to the Codex of Light. It was clear they had prepared for the inquisitor’s arrival.
***
Regrettably, the inquisitor fainted and missed the spectacle.
“Follow me,” Evhar guided them to a prepared infirmary to lay down the inquisitor as the monks glanced curiously.
Noticing she was a woman, the monks seemed bewildered. While the monastery wasn’t strictly off-limits to women, access was mostly restricted to avoid unfortunate incidents.
As Evhar helped her out of her armor to make her more comfortable, he stared at her face and was shocked.
“Isolde Brant?” Gebel and the others couldn’t hide their surprise either.
“The daughter of the Brant ducal family?”
“Yes, I remember her from her coming-of-age ceremony.”
“She must be quite something,” chimed in Isaac.
Even Isaac had heard of the Brant ducal family, known throughout the Gerthonia Empire. The current emperor rose to power with the Brant family’s support.
“If the abbot attended her coming-of-age ceremony, that shows their significant influence,” noted Evhar.
Despite the Codex of Light preaching equality, the Brant family was renowned for their devout faith. It was unexpected for their only daughter to work as a harsh inquisitor.
The inquisitor, wielding absolute authority, had made enemies.
Isaac secretly pondered that her disappearance wouldn’t raise suspicions among many.
Eventually, they all reached the same conclusion.
If Isolde died there, it would cause more than a few problems.
‘It might’ve been easier to let the wolves have her,’ thought Isaac inwardly but didn’t show any outward signs.
“Let’s focus on keeping her alive. Whether she’s a Brant or a Barbarian, saving her shouldn’t go to waste,” he suggested.
Gebel tore Isolde’s clothes to check her wounds. The stench from the wound made them all grimace.
The foul smell seemed ominous. Evhar identified it as signs of decay, possibly the plague.
“Hmm, it’s the plague,” Isaac muttered.
Hearing this, Evhar also recoiled.
The animals in the area were infected, indicating a possible widespread plague. Yet, humans had never been infected before.
Isaac felt a chill run down his spine.
‘Could this all be intentional?’
He couldn’t shake the feeling that the animals had purposely spared the inquisitor.
Isaac remembered how the wolves had reacted to the plague’s scent.
Someone had deliberately infected Isolde to bring her to the monastery.
After a moment of silence, Evhar spoke up.
“Let’s begin treatment. Gebel, spread garlic and salt. Isaac, fetch leeches. I’ll arrange a prayer session with the monks.”
“Leeches?” Isaac seemed puzzled by the odd request.
“We need to perform bloodletting therapy. Getting rid of bad blood is crucial to rid the body of the plague.”
‘This is absurd. Drawing blood from a patient?’ he thought skeptically.
Isaac was on the verge of blurting out but managed to hold it back. This world was seriously lacking in basic medical knowledge, just like the Middle Ages. But hey, on second thought, it kinda made sense. I mean, in a world where monks worked miracles to heal diseases and injuries, it would be weirder if medicine was all advanced and stuff, right?
“But wait, this plague seems to be targeting the monastery.”
It was clear that the monastery was under attack, and it seemed like the monks weren’t fully prepared for this plague. Isaac figured out that the monks might struggle to handle the situation. Even Gebel seemed to be nodding along with Evhar’s concerns.
“I gotta do something about this. Keeping the lady inquisitor alive could be really important.”
