Sulphur & Lightning Chapter 37: 036 - God Help the Outcasts

Read chapter 37 of Sulphur & Lightning by anaugustauthor on NovelPedia.

The destination for his little excursion outside the city was an isolated market. He pulled out a map from the satchel hidden under his dense cloak and continued on his way. Well, if a person called it a market, they might be accused of hyperbole, as it was scarcely more than a few shared stalls and scrappy tables, but the idea still stood. He looked at the map again, checking if he was on the right track, but after a few moments of scrutiny, he sighed annoyedly and made an abrupt turn. Wrong way. This almost farcical situation repeated itself multiple times during the journey. What he was looking for was one of the many small osu settlements that were built in abandoned and inauspicious places all over the realm. One of these places was to serve as a market that he and his mother would have used to supplement the materials for his second-phase awakening. The dual role was shared by different communities across the weeks, and he didn’t know if it was the turn of the one he was approaching, but it was the only one he knew. As a stranger to this province, he had naturally relied on the letters his mother had sent to him to find his destination, but it wasn’t exactly smooth sailing so far. He crossed and recrossed forests, dusty roads, and streams in search of the elusive market. Still, he wasn’t destined to spend too long searching. Just my luck, he thought annoyedly, biting his lip as he saw an unfamiliar rugged settlement steeped in a familiar oppressive atmosphere. The place was built on the side of a large stream, but its appearance belied the fact, as there was scarcely any greenery or the sort of small critters streams close to settlements were wont to attract. In one word, the place was barren. The only remarkable thing his yellow eyes could pick out were the nine large huts which surrounded a great shrine in the centre, like a king attended to by his vassals. The Lycan had now pulled back his hood to reveal his tangled hair, hair that he shared with the occupants of this settlement. He walked into the space demarcated by a single signpost that had been defaced with slurs and foul substances by vandals and recalled some of the information his mother had given him about this place. It had no name, as was the case for all things osu, but some called it The Place of Nine Tears. He didn’t know the full details of what was supposed to have happened here, but he had heard that a flood had wiped out the community when a man had not only killed, but eaten, the sacred python of Idemilli, the river goddess and a vassal of the great earth mother. Though this was a great offense, it wasn’t regularly met with something as drastic as a flood, but the priests, fearing the influence of the young master, were hesitant in administering the punishment due. As a result, not only did the river spirit overturn the once-successful village, but also punished the nine priests and their descendants to stay on this land and constantly minister to her. The gods were nothing if not thorough in their wrath. He merely sighed inwardly before walking up to one of the inhabitants and giving a few standard greetings as he put a small bronze manilla into his hand. The old man smiled and offered him many blessings, saying his days would be long, he would never lack good things, and he would marry three wives at least. Elijah didn't know about all that, so he merely thanked him and inquired about the market here. “This one won't be in use for another three market weeks at least," was the reply. “I can direct you to another, though. It's the one closest to the Evil Forest." Elijah cursed his life internally before allowing the man to mark out a route on his map and departing with thanks. Half an hour wasted, he thought as the village grew smaller and smaller behind him. That's the state of it, though. At least I have a place to go to. Osu were not allowed to participate in the social life of other castes. It was only natural that the different communities woul