Chapter 213: Chapter 213: Revenge from Tingen
Chapter 283: Harvest and the Spider
Desire and reproduction?
This was the first thought that came to Hastur's mind. He watched for a while longer but did not detect the key element of desire, only pure reproduction.
Reproduction is feasible for crops, but gathering under a red cloth like this... it still seems somewhat inappropriate.
In his own territory, such things should be minimized.
Hastur began to ponder how to change the townspeople's concept of holding the Harvest Festival. If they were worshipping the Earth Mother goddess, he wouldn't interfere.
Because believing in the Earth Mother goddess wouldn't lead to uncontrollable events.
But this town believes in reproduction, not the Earth Mother goddess. If this continues, it will eventually lead to the embrace of the Mother Tree of Desire or the Fallen mother goddess.
This is something he absolutely cannot allow.
"There should be wind here, a strong wind!"
Hastur murmured softly, preparing to stir up a gale to lift the red cloth and reveal the true face of the so-called Goddess of Spring's Breath.
But when the wind blew from afar, the corners of the red cloth were lifted, yet the middle part seemed to be pressed down by something, remaining unmoved by the strong wind.
Something was amiss.
Hastur opened his spiritual vision and looked towards the red cloth, vaguely seeing a phantom-like figure lying on it, admiring the reproductive art of the five couples inside.
The figure resembled a spider but didn't have as many legs, nor was it hairy. Its abdomen was round and bulging, like it was pregnant, while its upper body was slender and elongated, similar to a person planted in a flowerpot and then standing up, dragging the pot along.
Perhaps sensing the gaze, the figure looked back. It should have been a human face, but it had no features.
A human-faced spider? Is this the true face of the so-called Goddess of Spring's Breath?
Hastur did not disturb it, choosing to continue observing quietly. The human-faced spider also made no other moves, still lying on the red cloth, admiring the major event of reproduction inside.
As the sun's rays shone from the horizon, the already somewhat illusory human-faced spider dissipated in the sunlight, leaving no trace behind.
With cheers rising, this year's Harvest Festival had ended.
Under the instructions of the priestess, some strong young men brought the prepared firewood and piled it around the red cloth, then ignited it.
Throughout the process, the red cloth was never lifted, and the idol burned to ashes along with the flames.
According to the townspeople, all living things ultimately return to the earth, becoming nourishment for all growth.
The Goddess of Spring's Breath is no exception. When she, with the blessings of her followers, turns to ashes and merges with the soil, she will nourish the crops, bringing joyful harvests.
This explanation is reasonable and convincing, hard to find fault with.
But Hastur still did not want to let the Goddess of Spring's Breath exist. He did not believe in the benevolence of gods.
Everything comes at a price; to gain something, one must lose something.
Such protection cannot come without a cost.
In Silver City, the land formed by the remains of the Giant Queen Omebellalla after her death allowed the people living there to have black-faced grass as their staple food, enabling them to survive in the harsh and dangerous forsaken land.
The price the residents of Silver City had to pay was to bear a cursed fate: only those killed by direct relatives would not turn into terrifying evil spirits.
Harvest comes at a price.
Hastur did not act immediately but went to the washroom to freshen up, then went downstairs for breakfast before going out for a stroll.
Although the festival had ended, the celebration continued, usually lasting a week.
Every household would showcase their produce during this festival.
The quality of the fruits and vegetables here was indeed better than those from other regions. The fruits and vegetables needed for Hastur's castle were usually bought from this town.
Firstly, because it was close, and secondly, because the quality was indeed good.
Hastur wandered around, casually inquiring about the priestess. In such remote villages, the words of a respected priestess often carried more weight than those of a mayor.
The priestess of Moira Town was not fixed but changed every year. When asked why it was so frequent, the residents gave a consistent answer.
Harvest needs to be brewed, just like women need time to recover after giving birth.
The same goes for the worship of the Goddess of Spring's Breath. After a year of harvest, a new priestess is needed to brew the next harvest.
This explanation made some sense but did not convince Hastur. He specifically asked if the priestess who conducted the ritual each year could be seen the following year.
The answer was yes, and they were even more popular when getting married because many believed that the priestess who conducted the ritual was also beneficial for reproduction.
This made Hastur sense something was wrong. In his impression, priests held a high status and, to maintain their sanctity, were generally not allowed to marry or have children, needing to remain single for life.
But here, the custom allowed priestesses to marry and have children, and they were very sought after.
Moreover, Hastur found that the townspeople placed great importance on reproduction.
Some families had seven or eight children and continued to have more, with the largest family having twenty-three children!
"You must be an outsider. Everyone here knows that the more offspring you have, the more likely you are to receive the blessings of the Grain God, and the more likely your fields will yield a bountiful harvest, even being pest-free all year round," a slightly drunk man mocked Hastur's ignorance.
Others thought Hastur had come to their town specifically to find a suitable bride.
This was not uncommon. Many outsiders valued the harvest blessings here and wanted to marry a local girl to bring the harvest blessings to their own fields.
But they often failed. They had many children, but their fields still yielded poor harvests and remained barren.
People concluded that only the area around the town could enjoy the Grain God's harvest blessings.
Hastur was skeptical of this explanation but took the opportunity to say he was indeed looking for a suitable bride and successfully obtained the address of this year's priestess's family.
"Old Jeff's daughter is not easy to marry. You need at least 100 gold pounds as a dowry and a field big enough for ten oxen to plow to have a chance," someone shouted.
"I think you have no hope. Although you look good, Old Jeff's daughter is only fourteen this year, and he is reluctant to let his precious daughter marry far away."
"Young man, let me teach you a way. Just put 500 gold pounds on Old Jeff's table, and he will happily accept you as his son-in-law."
Hastur walked away from these discussions. He did not go to Old Jeff's house immediately but returned to the inn to rest, planning to act at night.
After all, he was not here to covet someone else's daughter, especially not a fourteen-year-old. He had no such bad habits.
Around ten o'clock at night, Hastur went to Old Jeff's house according to the information he had gathered during the day.
Old Jeff's house was located in the northwest direction of the town square, a two-story townhouse, considered a relatively wealthy family in the town.
Old Jeff had two sons and a daughter. The eldest son was married and had moved out, the second son lived on the farm, guarding the crops, leaving only him, his wife, and their fourteen-year-old daughter at home.
Hastur was genuinely surprised. When he observed the priestess last night, he couldn't tell she was only fourteen, probably due to heavy makeup.
When the family turned off the lights to rest, Hastur appeared in the daughter's room.
Liv, a fairly memorable name.
To investigate the priestess issue in this town, Hastur used his nightmare ability to enter Liv's dream.
Perhaps because she had just experienced the ritual last night, or for other reasons, the dream was a field of abundant harvest, with golden rice ears hanging low, glistening with dewdrops.
Corn, pumpkins, carrots, cabbages, and other crops were growing lush and vibrant, the sight filled with bountiful fruits, and even the sky was a bright blue.
But there was one thing that made Hastur suspicious: every crop's root was entwined with white threads extending deep into the ground.
These threads were thin, some covered by soil, hard to see unless one lay down to look closely.
Threads, human-faced spider... could it really be the blessing of the Goddess of Spring's Breath?
Is she sleeping deep within this land?
Hastur couldn't help but wonder as he walked deeper into the field, finally seeing the dream's protagonist.
She was carrying a bamboo basket, picking fresh fruits in the field, her young and delicate face beaming with the joy of harvest. She neatly placed the bright red tomatoes into the basket.
Soon, the basket's bottom was filled, and she began picking cucumbers, cabbages, and other vegetables.
If undisturbed, she seemed capable of picking forever.
Hastur watched for a while, finding nothing unusual, and finally broke the silence.
The girl seemed startled, instinctively stepping back and hiding behind the cucumber trellis.
When she saw who it was, her eyes brightened slightly, and a blush spread across her cheeks.
Her eyes shyly darted around before she slowly walked out from behind the trellis and softly asked, "Who are you? How did you get into our field?"
This made Hastur frown and scrutinize the girl again.
According to the nightmare ability, she should be in a daze, with little consciousness, only capable of simple question-and-answer.
Could it be that the blessing from the Goddess of Spring's Breath hadn't completely dissipated, allowing her to briefly resist the nightmare's intrusion?
Perhaps Hastur's silence was too long, and the girl pouted unhappily, "You are really rude. I asked you a question."
"I am an outsider, who happened to come here and was attracted by the beautiful crops," Hastur replied.
"Oh, you came to steal our vegetables!" The girl showed a look of sudden realization.
(End of chapter)
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