Divine Punishment (2)
After the Second Prince of the Acad Kingdom suddenly fell from the sky, it took a full six months for him to miraculously recover. The fact that his shattered limbs healed properly without adequate treatment was nothing short of a miracle, but the matter of the Second Prince wasn't all that important.
"The pilgrims... they're not coming..."
"Ugh. Our medicine's running low soon. What the hell is going on?"
"Beats me."
The first to notice were the commoners who sought out the pilgrims to ease their weary bodies from hard labor, even if just a little. For those enduring grueling work, the healing from the pilgrims was one of their few joys. The pleasure of their exhausted, ragged bodies being renewed must have been a sweet respite for the people.
"What? The pilgrims aren't coming to the next village either?"
"What in the world is happening?! Village chief! Village chief!! Get out here!!!"
"Argh, I don't know! I don't know why the pilgrims suddenly stopped coming! I said I don't know!!"
These wanderers who had been traveling the world since before the villagers were born had stopped appearing. The void left by the absence of pilgrims who healed their aching, fatigued bodies grew larger by the day.
"What do we do? The fever won't break..."
"Ugh. No choice. We'll have to head to the next village."
"But that's in another country. Will it be okay?"
"Okay or not, with the kid this sick, we have to try something! Damn it... If only the pilgrims would come..."
The first to feel the impact were the sick and injured. The pilgrims who treated illnesses and wounds weren't coming anymore—that was a grave problem for them. They, and their families, were left with two choices: head to another country to save their loved ones or let them die.
Of course, going to another country wasn't safe. It was an era where terrifying monsters lurked just off the paths, and now there were no pilgrims patrolling and protecting the roads.
But despite the risks, some ventured out. There were those carrying sick children on their backs to other lands, and others pulling carts with parents too weak to walk.
Like that, little by little, the people began fleeing to other countries. As empty houses appeared one by one in villages that had been bustling just days ago, it was only natural for those left behind to grow anxious.
"Village chief, half the village is already gone. At this rate, it'll be empty. Do something!"
"Ugh... I heard from a merchant, but the cities are dealing with the same thing."
"The cities too?"
"Yeah. Some are even showing signs of plague. These are the end times. The end times."
"If even the cities... what will become of our kingdom..."
But they didn't know. That the pilgrims' departure was merely the beginning.
"The crops... they're not growing..."
"The sprouting season's long past. What's going on?"
"It's not just farming. Hunting's a bust too. I set a bunch of traps, and not a single catch."
"Fishing's the same. We used to haul in over ten fish back then, but now? Zero."
Birth had turned its back on their land. Nothing new was born, and nothing bore fruit. Mobile animals had all fled far away, while immobile plants quietly slumbered to endure the harsh times.
The humans of the Acad Kingdom reaped nothing.
"At this rate, we'll all die! Damn it!"
"Other countries are fine, but ours alone... What the hell is happening?"
As those remaining in the villages struggled on, clinging to life...
"Big trouble! Plague's breaking out in the cities!!"
"What?!"
"It's spreading uncontrollably already! It'll reach this village soon!! I'm leaving!"
"Damn it... No choice. If we wanna live, head to another country!!"
"H-Hey! You lot!!! Leaving the village?! What are you saying!!!"
"You're the village chief! With no pilgrims and plague spreading, you think this place can hold?!"
"B-But... I'm the village chief, recognized by the king himself..."
"Buts and all that! What has that great king done for us until now?! If you don't wanna die, pack up quick! At least traveling in a group, we can fend off monsters!!"
Death grew merciless toward their people. Famine and disease battered the Acad Kingdom harshly, and the numbers of the starved and diseased swelled.
Those who wished to live headed to other countries. Though the journey was far from safe.
Great numbers of humans fled the kingdom, driven by their will to survive. And news of this reached the capital soon after.
"What...?"
"Desertions among the people are increasing. At this rate, the Acad Kingdom will vanish."
"How... how can such a thing happen..."
"The pilgrims from the Life Temple not appearing is the direct cause, followed by a famine of utter despair. Crops won't sprout properly, hunting yields nothing, and even livestock aren't birthing properly."
A god's punishment methodically withering a nation to death. Confronting this reality, the king stroked the crown on his head with trembling hands.
A crown passed down through generations of ancestors. A symbol of qualification to rule this world. How joyful he'd been when it first sat upon his brow—as if he'd grasped the world itself.
Why had the god inflicted such cruel trials? The king lamented. The king grieved. The king wanted to remove his crown.
But not yet.
"I recall... when the Second Prince fell from the sky and was badly injured... something a departing pilgrim said."
"Yes. According to the guard's report, the Second Prince had blasphemed the Goddess of Life, bringing divine punishment. It's a top secret known only to that guard and us."
"What are your thoughts?"
The king's question met with silence from his retainers. No, they knew. To save the kingdom, the Second Prince must undertake a pilgrimage of atonement. Like the Life Temple pilgrims. A harsh pilgrimage.
But they couldn't voice it. Orkus, the Second Prince. The wastrel Orkus. The late-born prince doted on by the king. The kingdom's problem child who believed the world was his.
Unless that prince was sent on pilgrimage... the Acad Kingdom would eventually vanish.
"Is there truly no other way? No way to appease the Goddess of Life's wrath?"
Obviously, no answer came. The Goddess of Life was inherently merciful. Merciful enough to have her pilgrims care for other humans.
What had Orkus done to enrage such a goddess? The answer was clear, but unspeakable. The king sighed deeply.
And then.
"I've heard the whole story."
A man entered the council chamber.
"At this rate, the kingdom is doomed!"
The man repeating what everyone knew. The First Prince. Stur. The legitimate heir to the Acad Kingdom, the one to inherit the throne.
"Your Majesty. You must choose. Perish with the kingdom, or send your foolish brother on pilgrimage."
"Stur..."
"Your Majesty. No, Father. Time is running out. We don't know how long our stockpiles will last. Buying food with the treasury will hit limits soon. Make a wise choice."
At the First Prince's calm words, the king—King Sharcal—clutched his throbbing head and said,
"Are you saying this out of jealousy toward your brother?"
"Jealousy..."
Stur replied,
"Once, I did envy my brother for our parents' favor. But when I heard he'd wronged the Goddess of Life, I stopped. Why envy a foolish brother who doesn't even know what he's done?"
The king sighed at Stur's words.
"He's still your brother..."
"The moment he sinned against the goddess, he ceased to be my brother. Watch this kingdom crumble because of that child's mistake."
The king was speechless. It was undeniable fact that the Second Prince had brought doom upon the kingdom.
"And it won't end with sending that fool on a pilgrimage of atonement. While we still have some strength, we must gather all the people and attempt migration."
"Migration, First Prince?! Abandon our ancestral homeland?!"
"We don't know when my brother's pilgrimage will end. It's an indefinite path that could take years. Even if that fool completes it, it'll mean nothing if all our people are dead."
"That's true, but..."
"We might even have to abandon the kingdom's name. Forsake this land, our name, everything—just to survive."
At the First Prince's words, the retainers' faces turned to resignation. Otherwise, only extinction awaited.
The king, looking decades older in an instant, slowly removed the crown from his head. Everything felt like his own fault. Like he'd failed to properly watch over his foolish child.