Chapter 38: Suspicious Traces
Calix had been making continuous efforts to develop his bloodline abilities. He had been trying to properly cultivate 'Ashapel's Instinct/Avatar of the Battlefield'.
'Very good. Your approach to close-range combat has become sharper than before. Do the same in actual combat as you did today. Be cautious when closing the distance, but once you've made up your mind, don't hesitate and move quickly.'
'......Yes.'
'Hmm? Why do you look like that? Didn't you like it?'
'No. How could that be? Thank you for the advice.'
However, despite consistently sparring with Zahira, who had mastered various weapon techniques, that ability showed not the slightest change.
It still wouldn't budge from '17%'.
His speculation was that it was because the growth conditions weren't being met.
To gain experience, he would need at least knight-level proficiency in swordsmanship. Among the Mountain Rabbits, he could count Commander Royce and Gregor as figures of that caliber.
However, the fact that it required time and experience remained unchanged. So when he pushed aside his earnest desire to become stronger to one side of his heart...... This time, Ranita's bloodline ability rose to the surface.
[Bloodline ability change detected]
[Ranita's Heart/Source of Mana '1%' increase, currently '49%']
[Activation conditions unconfirmed]
Ranita's bloodline ability was to detect mana emanated by living beings within a certain distance. He didn't know how much would change with a '1%' increase, but more important than that was the fact that Priestess Ella had noticed the process.
'This...... Might become a problem.'
The moment Calix absorbed the divine power and confirmed Ella's widened eyes, he instinctively knew he was in an uncomfortable situation.
Even without knowing well, he had pinpointed it accurately.
In an era represented by divinity and royal authority, knowledge was hidden in expensive books, and ignorance and barbarism reigned everywhere. Precisely because of this, faith held special meaning among the common people.
Priests were treated with respect everywhere. Conversely, if something happened that threatened a priest's authority, they could earn anyone's hatred.
He absorbed divine power? Even if the religious order didn't dispatch heresy inquisitors and holy knights, the kingdom's religious branch wouldn't leave it alone.
However, just as he was about to check Ella's reaction, one resident who came out of the house took the initiative.
"......An honored person has come!"
As if they had been waiting for that cry, people flocked to the square in groups.
The complexion of the village residents was not good, to put it mildly. With harvest time approaching and the viscount castle not far away, hunger shouldn't have been fitting. Regardless of whether they were children or adults, their cheeks were sunken, and their eyes looked ready to pop out at any moment.
"Ah...... Mother. My respected mother."
"Holy one, please help us."
Thud-
They dared not touch the hem of Ella's garment, but knelt and bowed their heads, pleading for divine mercy. The heavily armed soldiers and mercenaries moved toward only one person as if they were invisible.
It was the power of faith.
And she—
Turned her gaze away from Calix to face the residents. She smiled as if nothing had happened and buried it away.
"Mother, you say...... Even though you're much older than Lady Ella, why do you call her mother?"
"Look at this ignorant bastard. It's not mother, but Mother. It's a religious term."
"Aha."
"Don't go around saying you're my disciple anywhere. Please."
Tsk.
While Volga was receiving harsh scolding from his master, Basim, Calix looked to the side at the touch he felt on his forearm.
"Cook comrade."
"......Yes, Gregor."
"What are you doing spacing out like that? We need to go investigate, right?"
He nodded, but on the other hand, he couldn't easily shake off the thoughts in his head.
If it wasn't something worth making an issue of, if only Ella said it was okay, couldn't he absorb divine power bit by bit?
No more, no less, exactly 51 times.
Yes, that would be just right.
***
The Mountain Rabbits gathered testimonies from the residents centered around Vice-Captain Marik. It was certain that an Anomalous Phenomenon had occurred, and Ella was tracking evil energy. They wanted to collect information in advance to specify the enemy's identity.
"The disaster came by ten days ago. My friend who lives next door disappeared without a trace. I heard screams, but I didn't dare go outside."
"Are the traces still there?"
"Of course, who would dare touch them?"
"Let's take a look around."
Creak-
Calix entered the victim's house with Hadiya. The door was half-broken with hinges hanging loose, and the furniture in the room was scattered everywhere.
"......It smells like blood."
"Don't even mention it. The walls and floor are completely covered in blood......"
"How many people lived in this house?"
"An old man and two children lived here."
"So three people. Were there no other victims?"
"Twelve people disappeared from our village. A total of four households."
"What about the time? Did it only come at night?"
"Yes. It mainly happened when it was dark, but occasionally it happened during the day too. So how could we go out to do farm work?"
"I see. There were no witnesses, of course."
"That's right."
"......What do you think?"
At Hadiya's question, Calix opened his mouth without delay. Even with limited experience, there were things he could deduce.
"I don't know much about Anomalous Phenomenon, but I think I can infer a few things. Since it happened inside the house, the attacker's size would be similar to a human's build. Also, although things were broken, most are scattered on the floor. It cleanly killed only the targets and left. If no corpses remained, it must have devoured them."
"Hmm."
The man skilled in tracking let out a short groan and agreed with his words. However, there were points that could be reinforced.
"One more thing. Blood was splattered in all directions. And it was an enormous amount splattered evenly. It must mean they completely ground up the people. I'll have to ask Lady Ella for her opinion on this."
"......Could it be human work?"
Then suddenly, after a moment of hesitation, Calix voiced a personal speculation. Viscount Erchi had suddenly come to mind.
"Human work...... Well. It would be possible, but to create such a massacre, you'd need to be at least a high-ranking knight. Above all, they didn't leave a single piece of flesh. You're certain it wasn't cleaned up afterward?"
"Oh, of course. We really didn't touch anything."
"That's right."
"......"
"Calix, don't think too complicatedly. Meticulousness and hypersensitivity are separated by a sheet of paper."
The last words contained subtle reproach. Wasn't he being overly ambitious in his desire to produce special results?
Calix quickly agreed. Anomalous Phenomenon were something he had never experienced; there was nothing more foolish than deciding the result and forcing the process to fit.
Nevertheless, the more he wandered around the crime scene, the deeper his suspicions grew. A meaningful commonality was discovered among the victims.
"Hadiya."
"......Mmm, what you said made sense. They're all people who deserved to die. To be precise, those with the least influence in the village disappeared first. A widow, disabled brothers, an old woman, an old man raising two children."
"Too coincidental to be chance, right?"
"Hmm, yeah. It seems so."
Indeed, there were those among the Mountain Rabbits who harbored such doubts.
One of them was the dwarf Basim.
"Bullshit. Didn't you guys conspire to kill them?"
"N-no! Absolutely not!"
"You're human, aren't you?"
"......Yes, yes? But so what?"
"Humans kill humans. Isn't that common sense? Why deny it? Because you're not being honest! Tell the truth right now!"
"No, I'm telling you it's really not!"
"Ha! You're shouting like a murderer indeed!"
"......"
This side wasn't helpful as always...... But the second person was different.
"Commander, something's strange."
"Strange?"
"The village administrator and village chief seem to be hiding something. I could clearly feel it from their way of speaking and attitude. It might just be personal intuition, but it feels unsettling. There's something...... There."
Vice-Captain Marik was the person responsible for the Mountain Rabbits when Commander Royce was absent; naturally, his words carried different weight.
And what changed this suspicion into conviction was none other than Calix.
"Come to think of it, there are strange parts."
"......?"
As the veteran mercenaries' gazes focused on him in an instant, Calix calmly retraced the village residents' testimonies.
"They said the first victim was a woman living on the outskirts of the village, near the forest. She made a living by collecting dry branches to sell or helping with odd jobs. The second victims were young brothers. They were physically impaired, so they couldn't find partners and lived depending on each other, and the third was an old woman. They said she had often been treated as a witch from long ago. Also, the most recent victims were a household with an old man and two children."
Having all experienced considerable hardships, they quickly grasped the meaning.
"......Only weak people were targeted. Like ghosts."
"Yes. It's a bit unsettling to be a coincidence. It's as if someone selected sacrificial lambs and offered them as prey."
"Hmm, but isn't that not particularly surprising? You're saying they selected people to be used as sacrifices and offered them up, right? In a world where people steal when their bellies rot, that much is nothing."
An unexpectedly disapproving response came back, but that was fine. What Calix wanted to address wasn't the residents' morality.
"That might be so. But if there's a possibility it could become a risk factor, we should keep it in mind."
"......What kind of risk factor could there be for us?"
"'Humans'. If they offered sacrifices to monsters, it would be a small problem, but if it's something happening separately from the Anomalous Phenomenon, the story would be different."
Calix took a breath and added.
"Viscount Erchi's unfriendly attitude, the village chief and administrator's suspicious tone. There must be a clear reason why the Vice-Captain felt suspicious. It wouldn't hurt to prepare."
"That's not enough. Isn't there anything else? Something more certain."
"The mission proposal."
"Mission proposal?"
"Yes, the mission proposal stated that those affected by the Anomalous Phenomenon 'seemed to have their very existence disappear'. They didn't make such a messy blood painting like this. In other words, it's not the work of the monster described in the mission proposal."
After the words ended, deep silence flowed.
Did I go too far?
"Commander, in any case, the Anomalous Phenomenon is still our top priority, right?"
"......"
No. Commander Royce sent signals of understanding with a few eye gestures, and the members tactfully caught on and began offering their respective opinions.
"Damn it, this got complicated. In the worst case, we might be attacked by fellow humans, right? Should we separate the soldiers first?"
"Let's send them to the front row. I refuse to get stabbed in the back."
"Hey, how many knights did they say were left?"
"Three."
"If we end up fighting directly, it'll be tight, right?"
"This is the countryside. The level won't be that high."
"Still, open terrain won't do. We need to fight with mountains behind us. Preferably in rough terrain."
"Hadiya can handle that."
Devising a strategy was the job of key figures, and the veteran mercenaries began combat preparations accordingly.
The Mountain Rabbits always moved that way, and Calix was now becoming accustomed to that method.