Chapter 292: Unearth (12)

"A second story? You..."

I froze.

Hadn’t he sworn he’d give me anything?

Back then, he had told the tale of Mudcash the goblin mage as though it were his people’s last secret, something that was between life and death.

Yet now he speaks of another story, hidden after all this time?

"So from the start—!"

"Wait." Isaac’s voice cut cold across my anger. "He’s under something. A charm. Or a condition. Don’t break it. If you jar him, you may lose the thread. Just hear him out."

"A charm?"

I looked closer. Yes, something was off about his eyes. I’d never seen that look in Zixkisses Boomtong before.

I forced a nod. "Fine. What is Mudcash’s second story?"

The hobgoblin smiled faintly. "In truth, you must go west. To the desert, not the eastern mountains."

"..."

It was the complete opposite, impossible to mistake.

Zixkisses went on, "And there, you must cry out, chwiik, chwiik, chwiiiik!"

"And what does that mean?"

His eyes were fixed on mine. "It means nothing."

"..."

My grip tightened on the sword hilt. A hot wave of futility rose in my chest.

Does he want me to tear him apart?

Flap.

Isaac wheeled up above me. "Play along. I’ll handle the rest."

I exhaled and tilted my skull up. "I see. Nothing more?"

"That is all."

There was no point in arguing. If the desert proved false, I’d just repeat this farce again. Then Isaac’s voice slid into the air like a curse.

"The longer you live... the deeper your forgetfulness,“ Isaac chanted, wounding ach syllable with rhythm.

Zixkisses swayed. "My... my head..."

He clutched his temples and collapsed.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Erased it. Just that piece. It was a... hard... and delicate..."

Erased a memory. Pinpointed, plucked away. Even now, sealed, he could do this. I stared, stunned, as he sagged limp against my arm.

"It was a hard job... Hide... take me to the trees... till he stops convulsing... then..."

Thud.

Isaac never finished. His body went slack, like a doll with its strings cut. It was the second time I’d seen him fall like this.

Should I push mana into him?

No, his last command was to hide.

I carried him into the shadows and crouched until Boomtong’s spasms eased. I understood now. Isaac had forced this encounter into the third meeting. Only then, normally, would the second lie unravel. When I returned, the hobgoblin blinked up at me, dazed, as though waking from a dream.

"Thank you... thank you! If there’s anything I can offer..."

"..."

It was exactly the same reaction. Just now, only the memory of being told to go to the western desert had been erased. The only difference from before was the vacant look in the eyes. A side effect of memory editing, perhaps. Isaac, that guy, to think he can even do something like this...

Conscious of the crow doll in my arms, I calmly said to Boomtong, "Mudcash? You mean the desert cry? I tried that. Nothing happened."

His eyes cleared. No shock this time. No feigned surprise. Just a flat expression. Then, slowly, mechanically, he lifted his gaze. A chill crawled down my spine.

"Then you must hear the

third

story."

My knuckles loosened on the hilt, but tension climbed higher. "Fine. What is it?"

"First, a gift. Follow me."

He moved like a puppet, straight to the edge of the village, to a nondescript boulder under an old tree.

Nothing remarkable.

Bark, stone, earth. Without a word, he seized a pick buried in the soil and hacked at the ground.

"What are you doing?" I asked sharply.

"You will see. Wait."

Dirt flew. Minutes later, he turned, palm open. In his hand lay a single small coin, the soil still clinging to it. Not serion, not roti, just a widget.

Boomtong, held out the tiny coin to me. "One widget. I give this to you."

It had been a long time since I’d seen a bronze coin.

"..."

"If you cast this coin into the air, you will surely gain the enlightenment of the mage Mudcash."

The moment that small coin was forced into my hand, Boomtong’s eyes narrowed. His brow furrowed, and he turned back to me with a face entirely different from before. No, it was exactly the same as before.

"Where... am I?"

The good-natured hobgoblin looked at me with complete bewilderment.

"I... suddenly cannot remember anything. I know you saved my tribe, savior, but after that... suddenly... I do not know why I am here."

"This place, you didn’t know of it before?"

Boomtong blinked in confusion and nodded. "What... did I say to you?"

I waved him off. If that had been an act, then he was none other than Dantalion, the hidden Demon King. However, misplacing my anger on the wrong target would be dangerous. Instead, I told Zixkisses Boomtong the same thing as before: that war was about to break out, and he must flee, and to abandon everything tied to humans before he was dragged into it.

Perhaps I could change what was coming, but if I planted false hope, the cost would only be his blood and flesh. Boomtong had already endured more than enough suffering.

[Reputation with faction +70.]

[Reputation reflects the attitude of a group/tribe/race toward you...]

[Your reputation with the Crimson Deer Goblin Tribe is now Very Friendly. However, they have little they can offer you in return...]

[The longer they survive, the more your reputation with Race: Goblin will continue to rise.]

I checked the rising reputation message again. After leaving him behind, I laid Isaac’s limp body on the ground. I pried open one eyelid with my fingertips. Only darkness stared back—no glimmer of light, no spark. I could only see black, like the time he had been locked in that warehouse.

I wondered if I needed to recharge him again, but it hadn’t been long since the last time.

Could something be wrong with the doll itself?

Anxious, I pushed mana into him. It wasn’t something that ended quickly.

Bzzzt!

I jolted him with energy again and again, but the crow puppet only twitched weakly, unable to wake up. It wasn’t until I poured in fire, wind, and even ice mana together that the crow finally startled awake.

"...!"

"You alright? You pushed yourself again, didn’t you?"

"Yeah. Memory editing is always hard. Right now it’s like trying to weave threads more tangled than the ones I can pull."

"Are you sure you’re fine like this? I had to feed you far more mana than before. You didn’t stir for a long while. Twice... no, three times as much."

"

Hmph

. So what? You use me to exhaustion and then begrudge me a bit of mana?"

I raised a hand defensively, trying to explain. "No, that’s not what I meant..."

It’s just...

Isaac kept collapsing, and the thought bothered me.

"I wondered if giving you Lurium directly would help stabilize you."

Isaac chuckled, as if he could feel my concern despite his barbs. "

Heh

. It would, actually."

"Then maybe I could try it at the imperial vaults..."

"And do you have the strength to raid them now? Save your worries for later."

I still stared at him with unease, but Isaac only laughed, mocking the very thought. "What do you take me for? If I want something, I’ll claim it myself. Speaking of which... where’s that cute goblin?"

"We parted after the third story. Someone must have placed a hypnotic command on him."

"Impressive, wasn’t it? Three separate layers of conditions stacked in his memory. Makes me wonder what else is buried there. I’d love to tear into his mind, even if it’s messy."

He meant torture.

"That... would be a problem."

If this was about winning Lime’s favor, then cruelty like that, once discovered, would ruin everything.

Isaac gave a knowing smirk, as though he’d read the thought straight from me. "

Heh

. Fine. So, what was the third story?"

I carefully set the one-widget piece down, repeating Boomtong’s words. "He handed me this coin. Told me to cast it into the air..."

Isaac tilted his head, staring at the copper coin for a long moment. "

Hmm

."

At last, he spoke in a low, unimpressed mutter that didn’t match his careful observation.

"What is this?"

He plucked it up with his beak and flicked it into the air with no reverence, as though tossing a coin into a wishing well. It traced a graceful curve through the air, but it didn’t strike, pierce, or enter anything.

It landed on the ground with a hollow clang. A small puff of dust rose where it fell.

"This... is just an ordinary coin."