Chapter 484: The curse of the mighty
The room fell completely silent, every villager now focused on the man who held their past, present, and future in his frail hands.
"Wel... welcome—cough, cough—everyone, to the village gathering," the old chief greeted.
The crowd bowed their heads quietly in respect. After a moment of catching his breath, the chief lifted his staff again and tapped it gently into the wooden floor.
"We are the descendants," he continued, his voice steadier now, "of those who once lived in the gods’ lands... but defied them."
A heavy silence filled the room.
"Our ancestors... betrayed the divine order, and for that, the heavens cast them out. They were exiled—thrown down from the lands of light to this forsaken place. A land of stone, grass, and struggle. A land with no sky to rain, and no stars to keep watch."
As he spoke, many in the crowd lowered their heads, grief and shame etched deeply into their faces. Mothers hugged their children a little tighter. The elders nodded solemnly and even Rael, who hadn’t heard this tale fully before, felt a shiver crawl down his spine.
"This land," the chief went on, "was given to us not as a home, but as a punishment. No great beasts dwell here, no divine protections guide us. We were meant to wither. To fade into myth."
His gaze swept across the gathered villagers, each one silent as stone. The weight of the past pressed heavily on their shoulders, and the future—shrouded in uncertainty—seemed just as cruel.
"Our reproduction," the chief said, voice thick with pain, "was taken away from us."
Everyone already knew about this. But each time those words were spoken aloud, they hit like a fresh wound.
"Very few women among us can still conceive," he continued slowly, as if each word drew blood from his throat. "And even then... the offspring have always been girls."