Finding purpose

Kigen must have drifted to sleep. When he finally came to, there was barely any signs of the mouse left. Not the skin, bones, or even blood. Just some scattered remains here and there.

He had no idea how much time had passed, but something stood out to him. The pain that he had been experiencing was no more. After giving himself a thorough checkup, he realized that he did not have any injury. 

Kigen could barely wait to get out of the mouse hole and check himself again. Maybe he could even take flight. However, just as he was about to crawl out, he heard a soft sound coming from much deeper in the ground. 

Since flying was his most convenient means of movement, Kigen felt extremely uncomfortable being underground. Truthfully, he wanted nothing more than to crawl out of that hole. 

However, he could tell that whatever was making that sound did not pose any threat. Therefore, despite himself, he decided to go deeper and investigate.

When he did, he was very stunned by what he saw. Five little mice, each the size of a pillow, maybe smaller, were curled up in a corner. Kigen realized that the mouse that had been his snack was in fact the parent of these little ones. 

Saddened, Kigen did not know what to do with them. He couldn't very well raise a family of mice, could he? However, he also could not bring himself to consume them. 

Not that he needed to, he thought. They would probably end up being a snack for some other predator. With deep sorrow, he turned around and made his way out of the cave, where he was able to stretch and spread his wings. 

Sadness was replaced by joy upon realizing that he was almost fully healed. He wasn't completely fine, there were still a few sore spots, but for the most part, the wounds he had the previous day were mostly healed. 

Just as he was about to leap in celebration, his face contorted in shock and horror. His precious wings had not healed. Part of his hind wings had even started to turn yellow, from the familiar green, a clear sign that they were withering. 

More horror came when he tried flapping his wings and found that they were not as responsive as he would have wished. Where they used to flutter about effortlessly, they now moved in a lackluster manner. 

"Oh no!" Kigen lamented as he realized that he could barely get off the ground. Luckily, after much effort, he realized that he could achieve some form of flight. Even then, he could barely fly a few feet from the ground. 

The feeling of weakness and fatigue had not left him completely. 

A thought creeped into his mind. What if consuming that mouse had barely been enough for him to repair himself? If that was the case, then should he go back and consume the other mice he had left behind?

He really did not want to do that, but it looked as though that was his only option. Perhaps by doing so, he was saving them from a worse fate. Based on how their parent had died, Kigen did not think it was painful.

Thinking about it, Kigen wondered if he was being too 'human'. He had already died as a human, and even when he was a human, he was not exactly a fan of mice.

However, a part of him felt that killing defenseless kids, even though they were of a different race, was not the way to go.

He still remembered the feeling he got from consuming the peaches the previous day. He had been filled with energy and ended up feeling invincible. This was how he ended up frolicking in the air and being chased by the eagle. 

If he could find another peach like that, then maybe he could kickstart his healing process. He decided to forgo on the mice babies and find something else to consume. 

Looking at the tree trunk he could have climbed the previous day, he made his way there. Since flight was not possible, he could only rely on walking and climbing. 

A few steps in, he was shocked to find something stuck on his foot. As he turned to look at what that was, he realized it was an earthworm. The poor thing was moving about under the leaves. It had not expected to be trampled. 

To Kigen, the earthworm was the size of a snake. As it was wriggling, so was he, trying to get it off his foot. That's when he realized it, the tendrils in his feet had already grown out and started to consume the poor creature. 

As he watched the earthworm started shrinking at a visible rate. Before he could make out what was happening exactly, the entire thing was fully consumed.

With joy, Kigen celebrated that he was more energetic than before. The earthworm was more of a snack, but it had served its purpose. He was no longer so weak and fatigued. This suddenly opened up a whole new source of nourishment. 

Listening around, he could hear a few critters here and there making noise in the forest. "Hehe, time for a small breakfast," Kigen thought as he rushed through the forest. 

***

A middle-aged woman walked along a path, headed up to a mountain. In her hand, she carried a small collection of wildflowers, barely forming a bouquet. She was wearing mourning attire and had hidden her face with a cloth.

Few people paid attention to her, and those that did could only offer up their condolences. Mistress Kering was known in the village as a kind woman. In their mind, she had recently lost a child who was as close to her as her own son, and this earned the sympathy of the people.

Ever since she moved to the village, she had been taking on several children who were destitute and had no other place to turn to. Her home had become an unofficial orphanage. This had earned her a lot of good will from the villagers, who saw her as some kind of saint. 

As she trekked up the mountain, various thoughts kept running through her mind. However, she did not stop walking until she was at the peak. This was where she turned around, scanning the horizon. 

The mountain peak was flat and only had scanty vegetation. There was a thick grass cover, but it barely rose above the knees. In this grassland, a small area stood out. A rock had been placed there, and this is where Mistress Kering was staring at. 

"So many sacrifices," she muttered as she looked at the rock. "If you were alive now, would you understand? Or would you judge me too?" There was a look of sorrow in her eyes as she spoke.

"Soon, it will all be over, you'll see," she said into the wind. "I have finally succeeded." Something seemed to change in her as she spoke, like some hope was being kindled despite her sorrowful look. A small smile came to her face just then. 

"When I first saw the boy, I knew there was something special about him, but it was only after the test that I discovered how unique he is, especially in this god-forsaken land." Mistress Kering had no idea how long it had been since she opened up completely to anyone.

At this point, she was just looking for a confessor, someone to listen to her. Maybe, she just needed to speak it out.

"Too bad for the parents," Another guilty look flashed across her face. "They were nice people, but they were in the way. The mission was important, so important that no price was too high. They just had to go."

She could still remember how she had cast the spells, causing the massive landslide. Alongside her target, several other farmers had also perished. However, this was the only way she could ensure no doubt was cast on herself.

Her plan had worked brilliantly. It could be considered a perfect cover-up. None was the wiser, and she had already made a name for herself as a Good Samaritan. Hence, many of the children who were orphaned were sent to live with her, including her target, Kigen.

Who would have thought, the person the entire village hailed as a saint was indeed the worst sinner. Not only had she caused one of the greatest catastrophes in the village, but she was also responsible for what could be considered a genocide in the village.

"Now that I have set everything in motion, all I can hope is that nothing goes wrong," she whispered, as she turned around and walked back to the village.