C146: Remaining peace
“Huh?”
Arnold stood frozen in surprise, his mind scrambling to process the absurd question.
“Ah, forgive my idiocy.”
Bennet laughed. He reached into his trouser pocket and retrieved a small object.
It was a simple, six-sided die carved from dark wood, its edges slightly rounded from frequent use.
Bennet held it between two fingers, then flicked it upward with a casual motion.
The die flew into the air, spinning rapidly beneath the light.
Arnold raised his eyebrows.
‘What is this? Is he another Deceiver?’ Izzy wondered inside his mind. But what could a Deceiver possibly do with a die?
She refused to be caught off guard. She did not let Arnold’s gaze follow it too closely. Instead, she focused on Bennet himself.
She even warned Isa to prepare to switch focus the moment Izzy’s attention shifted.
The die flipped through the air before landing neatly back into Bennet’s palm.
“A five?” Bennet tilted his head, staring down at the die with visible disappointment. “It seems my good fortune has waned.”
“???”
What was the purpose of that bizarre action? Within the shared mind, Izzy felt no change in her thoughts. Her thoughts remained as clear as they had been before the roll.
[---]
‘This boy... he must be Bennet. What does he need from me?’ Izzy wondered. She had never met the boy in this iteration, but she recognized Bennet’s appearance through the information recorded on the black monument.
After all, in the previous iteration, Izzy had deduced that Bennet might have some connection to the “Golden Trader,” mostly because there had been no note written beneath his portrait in Victor’s catalog.
Bennet offered a wide, pleasant smile as he slipped the die back into his pocket.
‘What was that die for?’
Arnold tilted his head slightly before asking, “What do you need, kid?”
To be honest, the kid looked eerie. Izzy really had no desire to converse with him right now.
Bennet looked up at him.
“Nothing of great import, brothah. You were absent from our lessons this morning, so I was a bit curious.” He giggled again, pointing at the bag of supplies. “Are those goods intended for your beloved?”
‘...’
Beloved. It felt strange to hear such a term emerge from the mouth of this playboy-like kid.
“They are for a companion of mine,” Arnold replied coolly.
Bennet smiled, reaching down to scratch his hand absentmindedly.
“Ah! I understand! I observed Vine using similar things some time ago. It iz quite peculiar, is it not? Why are huma— I mean, Why iz the female anatomy so bizarre?” He laughed lightly, as if the thought amused him. “It iz indeed a blessing that I am a boy! I have no need to fret over such tiresome matters!”
“I see,” Arnold murmured. Within his mind, Izzy grimaced.
‘Isa, can you help me with this?’
‘No!’
Before she could even ask for Isa to help deal with this kid, Isa rejected the request immediately, and with surprising stubborn intensity.
‘Why?’
‘Something is weird! I don’t like him!’
‘That is weird.’
Izzy thought for a moment, then returned fully to Arnold’s perspective. She could not force Isa to handle every annoying task for her.
“Brothar, do you intend to abandon your schooling?” he asked, tilting his head to the side. “That is most unfortunate. The other children will surely miss your presence.” He smiled once more.
Arnold regarded him with skepticism. There was a vague discomfort, a nagging detail tugged at the back of his mind.
“Wait...”
Something was off. Why did he feel so uncomfortable?
‘School? In this iteration?’
“You are supposed to be in school right now.” Arnold narrowed his eyes to glare at the boy.
Bennet jolted slightly, his smile faltering. A tiny bead of sweat trickled down his forehead.
“Ah, ahaha. Iz that so?” He turned his face aside and whistled awkwardly.
‘This boy... is he also skipping his classes? What is wrong with kids these days?’
“Brothar,” Bennet said with a smile, his arms clasped behind his back as he stepped closer.
“Have you ever considered the possibility that…”
He stopped briefly, peering directly into Arnold’s eyes.
“everything you do has already been predetermined?”
‘…?’
Arnold raised an eyebrow.
The hand holding the bag tightened around its strap.
“What do you mean?”
[---]
The sun ascended, and shadows lengthened at their feet. The breeze stirred the branches, and small birds scattered to the sky.
“The fate of this village has already been concluded,” the boy continued, a placid smile resting on his face. “Everyone will eventually perish.”
“...”
Inside the mindscape, a wave of discomfort rose within Izzy.
Her surroundings suddenly fall silent.
She pressed her hand against her temple as a sudden nausea approached.
‘This is…,’ Izzy thought, gritting her teeth.
Something was preventing her from analyzing the boy's statements. It prevented her from thinking.
Not only that, but it also prevented her from recording the details of this conversation.
She widened her eyes, her pupil dilated.
‘How does…no, this, this is…’
Not at the center of the conflict. Not even directly involved, nor any significant intervention, aside from the blank note in Victor's notebook. An unimportant and unimpressive little boy, whose interaction with the situation was almost nonexistent.
‘He’s like Otto... but different.’
He bore a resemblance to Otto.
‘An outsider? No, that’s not it.’
The more she tried to grasp Bennet’s identity, the more slippery they became, as if her thoughts were sinking into mud.
‘I’ll probably forget about this, won’t I?’ A chill crept onto her spine, as she re-focused on the face Bennet was making.
A joyful, thrilled, exhilarated, and satisfied smile.
“What will you do next, brothah?” Bennet spread his hands dramatically.
Excitement.
Like a child who had just found his favorite toy.
“We are all actors, brother, cast in this grand play,” he stepped closer to Arnold until he was nearly breathing against his chest, his hands clasped behind his back. “And only the leading role has the chance to alter the course of the story.”
"I find myself wondering..." he said, tilting his chin upward to look directly into Arnold’s eyes. His playful eyes narrowed as a chilling smile spread across his face, “Have you landed that role yet?”
That smile made every hair on Arnold’s body stand on end.
‘Role?' Izzy repeatedly and frantically tapped her finger on the armrests.
Bennet stared at him for a prolonged moment, before tilting his head, his features instantly softening as a cheerful smile returned to his face.
“Hmm... I suspect not,” He giggled. “My dear Mary remains the best, izn’t she? How should some nobody steal the limelight from her!”
“...”
‘Mary…? What does she have to do with all of this?’
Izzy was well aware that she should avoid any entanglement with Mary. That girl was a bad omen, a disaster in every recorded iteration.
Yet uncertainty and doubt rose within her.
"I’m fond of her, but it’s a pity,” Bennet said, as he separated from Arnold and walked past him. “A wildflower can’t hope to bloom into sight, eventually it shall wither, taking with them their futility."
A heavy, suffocating sensation suddenly weighed down on Izzy. The air grew colder as Izzy saw herself trembling.
‘!’
Bennet continued speaking from behind Arnold.
"People always make the wrong choices. Do brothar not agree? Brothar must, because he's experienced it. Five times, is it? Or six times? Seven? I discovered this place only of late, and I confess I did not count." He chuckled lightly.
Swallowing her saliva, Izzy used Field Vision to track the boy, but instantly saw herself glance away. Sweat crept down her neck. Even Arnold went stiff as a statue.
"It gives me great pleasure, to find something I didn’t know. What happens next, brothah? I grow impatient to see!"
In just a brief glance, the boy's countenance…
'...'
His smile stretched grotesquely, exaggeratedly wide, widening until it reached his ears. The slits of his eyes curved upward to match. His gaze was so intense it seemed as if it would actually drill a hole into Arnold's skull.
'Was this... really Bennet?' Izzy wondered within Arnold's mind.
It was not something Izzy wished to describe, nor to see properly. Izzy refused to look at the boy with her Field Vision. Her mind simply refused to register him.
Had this boy... always been like this?
Bennet shook his head.
Instantly, the cold air vanished, even the feeling of stuffiness disappeared, like an illusion.
“...”
Bennet's expression shifted, returning to his childlike, human-like smile.
In his hand was once again the wooden dice.
"Brothah, your mind has grown stronger. You can hear us now, how very intriguing. How is it possible?"
“...” Izzy narrowed her eyes, steadied her breath.
Had some extremely important information just flashed through her mind?
“I’m really looking forward to the day we meet in person.”
Bennet flicked the die again.
“Though not at this moment, I reckon.”
The wooden die spun through the air before landing in Bennet’s palm.
“A four,” he remarked, his smile faltering. “You are indeed fortunate, brothar. I'm jealous.”
[---]
Arnold raised an eyebrow. The hand holding the bag tightened around its strap.
“What do you mean?”
The sun ascended, and shadows lengthened at their feet. The breeze stirred the branches, and small birds scattered to the sky.
Bennet offered no response, merely looking at him, the smile resting on his face.
Then, as if a switch had been pressed, he resumed his bright, childish laugh.
“I have other matters to attend to, brothar! Excuse my departure,” he said, offering a quick bow before running past Arnold.
As he passed, he lifted one hand and waved.
“Till we meet again!”
A wave of awkwardness washed over Izzy.
‘What kind of…’ she thought, staring after him. ‘Suddenly says something about something being predetermined, then just leaves?’
Was this normal behavior? She felt as though she had just seen another version of Isa.
‘Hey!’
Izzy ignored the protesting shout inside her mind.
‘What an odd kid.’
She sighed, before controlling Arnold to walk into the forest, back in the direction of the mansion.
—-
At noon, when the sun had reached its zenith, Arnold returned to the village.
By this time, he had a scheduled meeting with Davis.There were several matters he wanted to ask about: the Golden Trader, the vampires, and whether there were any other Stagefarers in the village besides those within Tear Drop.
He needed to identify every potential player active in the village, accounting for their strengths to ensure he overlooked no hidden variables.
“Mary!” Suddenly, a booming voice rang across the village square.
Arnold quickly drew himself behind the corner of a nearby house, watching the scene.
“Pa!”
In his Field Vision, he saw the massive, broad-shouldered Lumber running toward Mary with eager steps. The man's face was lit with a bright smile the moment he reached the girl. He placed his calloused hands on the girl's waist to hoist her high into the air.
“Ahaha! And what business brings you to the square, my lady?”
“Eheehee! I’m flying!” Mary giggled, her small hands spreading outward as Lumber lifted her higher.
‘Their relationship isn’t bad at all,’ Arnold thought, watching them with visible puzzlement.
“I’m helping our neighbors, Pa!” Mary’s cheerful voice rang out as Lumber set her on his broad shoulder, one hand holding her steady.
“Is that so?” Lumber laughed heartily, drawing glances from nearby villagers. “And whither does my lady wish to be transported?”
Mary giggled again and pointed ahead. “There! To Miss Dine’s house!”
“Let us proceed then!” Lumber declared. He adjusted his grip around her legs and strode forward, carrying her toward the house she had pointed at.
Mary swayed slightly atop his shoulder, laughing all the while, her flower basket bouncing against her side.
“...”
Arnold watched them silently.
‘Tomorrow is the day Mary goes missing.’
The black monument had stated it clearly.
The girl would have a fight with Lumber, flee to Opal’s house, and later run into the forest before disappearing.
‘But looking at this… would they really have such a falling out tonight?’
The scene before him did not look like a family on the verge of breaking apart. There was no visible tension between them, at least none that Arnold could see.
He stood in contemplation for a brief moment.
'Isa.'
“Yes, Izzy?”
Izzy changed her gaze, observing Isa, who was currently controlling Arriet.
Arriet was lying lazily on the bed, surrounded by stuffed animals, while the gray-haired doll sat nearby. Isa seemed to be playing again, one hand moving a stuffed bear while the other occasionally poked the doll’s head.
‘Follow them.’
“Okay!”
Arriet's face lit up immediately. She sat upright on the bed, her eyes shining.
“Isa has a new job from Izzy!” she giggled, puffing out her chest proudly before casting a smug grin toward the gray-haired doll.
Instantly, Isa returned to the amusement park in their shared mind, before she possessed the small bird perched on Arnold’s shoulder.
This bird had already been marked with her puppet mark, so Isa could take control of it.
The bird shook its feathers, turned its head toward Lumber and Mary and flew after them.
‘Don’t fly too far away from them,’ Izzy commanded through their shared link.
‘Oke, Mom!’
‘?’
Izzy tilted her head. The young mind had been acting strangely lately.
After a brief pause, Izzy returned her focus to Arnold.
Arnold turned on his heel, walking away from the supposedly happy family, toward the opposite direction.
His destination was the Lost Shepherd Pub.