Halperin's door was pushed open; the candles in the room had long since burned out, but thankfully Isaac had brought candles from his own room.
The old man, so thin he was practically skin and bones, lay on the recliner with his eyes closed, seemingly asleep.
Isaac took a few steps closer, maintaining a distance of two or three meters. "... Mr. Halperin."
Halperin opened his eyes, his cloudy pupils fixed on Isaac.
"Did you hear the noise outside just now?" Isaac asked.
Halperin showed no reaction, silently watching Isaac.
Isaac looked at Halperin's hand. "How about this, one tap for 'yes,' two taps for 'no,' and three taps for 'uncertain,' how about that?"
The fingers resting on the armrest of Halperin slowly rose and fell, the weak force barely qualifying as a "knock".
Would you like to talk to me?
[yes.]
"You heard what happened just now, didn't you?"
[yes]
"Did you send that Spider-Man?"
Halperin didn't move. Isaac waited for a while before realizing that " Spider-Man " was just a nickname Carlo had given the thing; its official name was definitely not that.
"Uh, it's... that thing with really long limbs."
[yes.]
"You had it pass something to me, didn't you?" Isaac didn't mention the severed hand directly, to prevent Halperin from impersonating him.
[yes.]
"What is that thing? Can you tell me now?"
Halperin raised his entire palm and moved it slightly before lowering it back onto the armrest.
Isaac placed the candle on the counter, took out the package tucked under his arm, opened it, and inside was the severed hand.
The severed hand came out of nowhere; it couldn't have been a demonstration of a "signature move." Isaac examined it and found the words "Come see me" crookedly written on the palm of the severed hand.
It didn't specify who to meet, which seemed like a simple introductory test. If the person receiving it didn't understand and even went around asking other people in the building, then Halperin might not be so cooperative.
In other words, Halperin likely hoped that the person who came to see him was someone who didn't yet fully trust Glen and his group.
"That Executioner was there to prevent your 'messenger' from entering this building, wasn't he?"
[yes.]
"You're not with Glen and his group."
[yes.]
Isaac understood. Glen's account of the internal strife was at least not a lie; the Cult was indeed in turmoil. At least Halperin, a Cult elder, claimed he wasn't with Glen and his group. In fact, Halperin seemed to be under house arrest.
It's debatable who betrayed the original Cult; he doesn't yet have enough information to make a judgment.
"You called me here because there's something you want me to do."
[yes.]
"But given your current situation, it's probably difficult to explain the specifics clearly."
Halperin's fingers twitched and curled; Isaac, observing the movement, deduced that it meant "to get closer."
He hesitated for a moment. An old man so weak that he couldn't even speak seemed unlikely to pose a threat, but as an elder of the Ghoul Cult, Halperin might have other dangerous methods even if he was truly unable to move.
He gripped the dice in his pocket, walked to the side of the recliner, and still kept a slight distance.
Halperin tilted his head slightly, his lips moved, and a breathy sound escaped his throat.
"Kill... me..."
Isaac paused, thinking for a moment to see if he had misheard.
"... You want me to kill you?"
Halperin didn't repeat himself. His cloudy eyes looked at Isaac, his pupils slowly moving as he raised a finger.
[yes.]
"This must be something I heard correctly," Isaac pondered the meaning of the words.
A senior member of the Cult, who was under house arrest, went to great lengths to send a message, summoning him before him, only to say, "Kill me."
"You asked me to come here for this."
[yes.]
"You've been trapped here by Glen and his men."
[yes.]
What would I gain by killing you?
Halperin did not respond immediately this time; rather, it was difficult for him to give a lengthy response in his current state.
Isaac maintained his persona. "I betrayed the Joint Investigation Bureau, wanting to join the Ghoul Cult in exchange for protection and immortality. If I kill you and gain nothing, that would contradict my purpose."
Halperin looked at Isaac, Isaac sighed, "I'm sorry, but at least for now, I think Glen and the others are more worthwhile to side with."
[no.]
"Hmm?" Isaac pretended to understand, though he felt it was a bit difficult to explain to such an old man.
Halperin stared at Isaac, too weak to speak, only tapping his fingers intermittently on the armrest, as if trying to express something, but the scattered taps could not form a complete sentence.
Isaac continued, "You want me to kill you, but I have a question."
[Yes.] Halperin indicated that Isaac could say so.
" Glen brought me to this floor and let me stay next to you. Your room is ajar. At first, I thought it was for their convenience in taking care of you, but now it seems you're not with Glen and his group, or even... you're being held captive by them, right?"
[yes.]
"That's strange. Normally, if a veteran like you is under house arrest, they wouldn't put an outsider next to you. Real isolation measures would mean I wouldn't even be able to see your door."
"But your messenger climbed into my window at night, and after the Executioner killed him, Glen neither searched the place nor moved me downstairs. He seemed completely unconcerned that I could speak to you."
As Isaac spoke, he sorted out his thoughts.
Even though Glen acted as if he didn't want Isaac to find out too much, he actually allowed him to contact this imprisoned elder, bringing him here and arranging for him to live next door to Halperin, which could even be said to have facilitated such contact.
Isaac didn't believe that Glen was willing to risk having the confinement of elders exposed just because he requested to live with the Cult's Cult, in order to create a condition for him to live with them.
Now, Halperin is asking Isaac to kill him, a request that comes after such a smooth contact, making it hard for Isaac not to be wary.
If Glen intends to allow him to contact Halperin, then Halperin's request might be within Glen's expectations. In fact, it's still uncertain whether Halperin is actually a senator under house arrest.
In either case, Isaac could not determine what the request meant, or what the consequences would be if he agreed and complied.