CHAOS BORN

Nero had been working tirelessly since dawn, cleaning the temple’s compound and helping Granny with the ceremonial rites for the wedding. He was now doing some minor decorations with flowers delivered by Jacob. Supposedly, he had come rushing in at daybreak, leaving just as abruptly, passing the flowers on to Granny while Nero was cleaning. 

It was understandable.

The wedding ceremony at the temple was a private affair, with only a select few bride and groom members present to witness the union.

The ceremony began with the groom entering with his parents, followed by the bride and her parents. Granny launched the sermon by addressing all the members present and discussing the couple’s union.

To his ears, the entire debacle always sounded like a lengthy lecture on the challenges of marriage and the necessity of working together as a couple. Granny always did it like she was trying to frighten off the couple from the deed, but today it was more mellowed down on account of the couple in question.

A few years ago, the groom had gained his path as a potter, making him not a poor choice of a partner for the bride who had gained her path as a weaver. But the father of the bride didn’t share the same opinion.

The dork vehemently opposed the union, claiming that his daughter was making a terrible decision and that the groom was a hoodwinker who had entrapped his daughter. At least, that was what he said.

The dork in question was the sole butcher of Agroville. He wanted to marry off his daughter to a neighboring village’s herder to seal an alliance with them. But his daughter loved her childhood sweetheart and was adamant about marrying no one other than him.

When their feud intensified, tensions between them had reached such heights that Granny and the village head had to intervene to mediate. Eventually, the father reluctantly agreed, on the condition that the groom provide a new home for them before marriage.

The man might have been hoping the guy failed the task or he could change his daughter’s mind over time. 

Anyway, that didn’t happen.

The woman had been steadfast like an iron fortress, as she had fended off both her father and various suitors that came her way while waiting for her beloved. The groom had also succeeded in his side with the outside help.

Most villagers had pitched in to lend a hand as they found the father’s approach to trying to corner the couple unsavory.

Even Nero had thrown himself behind the cause to spite the butcher for rejecting him. He never was the type to let go of opportunities to settle scores. 

This was not anything unusual.

The temple of Aphaia preached the nurturing of life, not enslaving them. The scriptures often taught the followers to create new life, protect, guide, help, and heal them while receiving the same.

While there is usually debate among different interpretations of how to guide them, the consensus is to employ the gentlest force necessary. In short, use the stick to threaten them, rather than beating them at every turn.

As the sermon was over, Nero broke off his musings, and the couple were reading the last of the vows on their marriage contract. 

The marriage papers started giving an ethereal glow as the couple finished reading their parts out loud.

This was a magical contract with two divine entities entwined, one as a mediator and the other as a witness. It had a symbol of a beam scale on its front page that came alive, tipping down on both ends as if it checked the weight of the vows stated. When the beam scale in the magical contract paper finally achieved equilibrium, a sense of calm and reassurance settled upon everyone present. This meant vows and conditions for each other presented by the couple have been acknowledged equal by the God of transactions, Aldous. 

Now all they needed to do was sign the agreement with the Goddess as witness.

The witness was more of an etiquette than a formality, as Aldous serves as mediator and witness. You could sign the marriage contract only under his power and the result would stay the same.

However, people here believed presenting it in such a way would strip away the emotional and spiritual aspects that distinguish it as a marriage, leaving it no different from any other transaction.

This led to other religious institutions taking charge of marriage affairs as they provided a standardized template for writing a marriage contract that covered its legal and financial aspects.

Depending on which divine you follow, your marriage contract may differ.

In a marriage contract from the Temple of Aphaia, there will be clauses that couples cannot harm one another that are very vague. They seem to focus heavily on creating solid financial statements that cover the couple’s property handling within the marriage and in case of their separation. Particularly clauses covering a child’s wellbeing from the union were airtight with no loopholes. It seemed no matter how a couple seems to screw up, the child would receive what they deserved for a bright future.

Adultery, desertion, cruelty by a partner, or other reasons were grounds for separation, rather than striking your partner with lightning.

Of course, depending on the amount of harm you pull on your partner, it would either result in heavy scolding with fines after separation or Guardians knocking on your door to truly show how a stick is used.

Phew, Thankfully Adultery was not a crime. What would our boy do if it was? 

This was all true under most religious entities except for, of course, the Church of Combat. Nero heard from Granny they had clauses stating adultery as a crime and could include ridiculous conditions from a groom like what and when bed activities should be, how many children she should pop out, and all other crazy stuff. They pay a hefty dowry the woman finds acceptable, for the marriage contract to be valid under Aldous.

Everyone looked down on these barbaric practices. But the people had come long accepting that they were working on two brain cells, one governing combat and the other for their dick. It was not just people though, other religious organizations also didn’t look kindly at the Church of Combat for allowing its followers to tamper as they pleased with contracts that held divine entities in it.

Well, this is all that I have been told. I shouldn’t judge until I see them in person, right? Nero thought as he threw flower petals alongside others, congratulating the couple for signing their marriage contracts. 

The groom and bride then bowed towards Granny, seeking her blessings. Granny quickly motioned them to lift themselves as she praised them. Then she placed the seed of a Thawnkardian tree in their hands.

The bride accepted the seed while both vowed to take care of it.

This was something they paid to the temple alongside the marriage contract.

Planting the seed of the Thawnkardian tree at the borders of Agroville village at the next dawn marks the completion of the wedding procedures.

Thawnkardian tree served as the first line of defense, and the most trustworthy insurance safeguarding the village.

Don’t be fooled by the appearance of the lively nature wafting off the tree. Apart from humans, everything was fair game to the ravenous monster, including one of its fallen kin. 

You see those birds inside their nest chirping on the branches while feeding their young. They are going to be slowly siphoned of their life force, eventually. The squirrels that are playing and running are also of the same fate. Same for those tree frogs or rabbits. You could probably say anything other than humans choosing to take shelter under this tree is forfeiting their lives gradually. 

But why? Every creature should have some base instinct, right? Why would these creatures not only live but also bring up their children in this coffin? The answer was security. Leaving the tree meant a fate worse than death.

This was not a coincidence. 

The Thawnkardian will brutally remove any predator other than itself to create this ‘paradise’. This was to monopolize its residents. They seemed to operate under the creed that one blood-leeching wolf would suffice, and they were determined to be that one.

These creatures now rely on this tree for protection and its yield for sustenance while giving away their life force as rent. With no predators or threats apart from humans, they eat and reproduce rapidly, bringing in more rent for their landlords. Why worry about running out of supplies or crowding when the landlords occasionally do population control?

Yet, even this was not enough.

These little guys were merely appetizers. Thawnkardians will actively hunt and screw over anything that comes within its range, lured by the flesh of its residents or the humans they shielded. They also don’t mind sharing their snacks with humans if they have the means to catch them.

Thawnkardian’s protection beyond their territory was more whimsical. Anyone who ventured beyond the thicket of Thawnkardian and found themselves face-to-face with monsters was pretty much on their own. But If they lure the monsters into the vicinity of the ruthless Thawnkardian, they will take action depending on their stockpiled food. After all, they can only conceal a certain number of corpses without scaring off the residents and new tenants.

Overall, Thawnkardian was a tremendous boost to the village, ensuring both security and opportunities for hunting small games and livestock rearing, free from the threat of dangerous monsters. Not having these creatures or dwindling them will dip the village’s chances of survival. It was a matter of life and death.

Now here is the catch, the Temple of Aphaia insisted that only the lifeblood of a consummated couple could sprout the seed of a Thawnkardian, nourishing it as if it were their child.

Nero laughed hollowly inside, knowing what they were doing. Tsk, tsk, it is truly incredible how skillfully they control the masses.

The couple sought blessings from their parents before solemnly withdrawing from the temple for their house where the rest of the wedding would proceed.

“Nero, bring that envelope for me.” hearing Granny’s request, he left for the house to pick up what she wanted. Bringing it to her, he watched as she put a wad of cash in the envelope before returning it to him. 

“Write names down, will ya?”

When Nero finished writing ‘Granny Orias’ in bold letters, she stood next to him at shoulder looking over, and voiced gently “Eh, write your name too. Why do you think I am giving away all this money?” 

Sigh. He wrote his name under her in the same style ‘Nero Orias’.

Nero had wondered why the system seemed to have an additional last name but assumed questioning Granny on the subject might be inappropriate. Besides, it was quite easy to guess. It was likely to be from one of his biological parents.

When he gave it to her, she checked the writing on the envelope in pondering. Heaving an exasperated sigh, she voiced out loud and clear for him to hear.

“When will I have the fortune to count the cash from envelope offerings? Didn’t Paula get a chance now, even though it took that young man a while? Not to mention he married the woman of his dreams. Oh, it seems this poor lady is fated to close her eyes before having an opportunity.”

Paula was the mother of the groom. It was customary around here to gift offerings of money with a name on the envelope for any significant event in someone’s life. The recipient will count these offerings and then keep an account written with the name of the donor and the amount given. When the donor has any event that later crops up in their life, the help is repaid.

In a wedding scenario, it was usually the mothers from each couple’s side who counted the offerings their children received. The idea was to lend a drop of water to one another in need and receive it back when you are in the same pinch.

“Do you think poking me whenever a marriage happens will change my mind? Keep dreaming then. I am going to be an adventurer. Besides, I am not even that old yet.”

“You can be whatever you want. How does that stop you from starting a family? Don’t Adventurers have family too? As for your age, your next Ascension ceremony will be in a few months. Once you gain a path, everyone will treat you as an adult with a marriage prospect.”

Granny stopped a moment to catch a breath before firing at him again.

“Besides, do you think it’s that easy to find a compatible bride? Since you don’t seem to fancy anyone from here, it may take months or years. If you have any plans to tie the knot, we should start looking for someone in the city from now on. Or are you trying to be like those dumb oafs, scraping money on the death’s door to buy hollow shells?”

Well, she doesn’t hide her dislike for men from the Church of Combat. 

“Aw, who will look after my dear granny if I marry? Don’t you hear everyone saying that a woman from the city is like a lioness that breathes down on poor in-laws?” He playfully teased her while gently pulling her cheeks.

“Humph, enough with your honeyed words. If I can handle a petty demon like you, I can manage even an entire pride, much less a lioness.” Granny yanked away his hand while declaring haughtily.

“That’s a shame. It seems my granny will never show me her skills in the tamer’s path.”

“Brat, are you hell-bent on living life as a lone dog? These days, I am increasingly fearful you find yourself left alone as you age and resort to wooing some married lady with these sweet words and face of yours”  

Nero felt like his heart leaped out of his mouth, but with some inhumane willpower, he showed utter disbelief rather than a horrified expression. 

It might have been good enough that even Granny felt embarrassed for what she said. 

“Cough, stop staring at me like a fool. Quickly put on your footwear. I must show my face at the wedding and sit in the first row for lunch to sneak off for my afternoon nap.”

Nero looked at Granny fleeing the scene and followed suit, walking out of the temple premises to look for his footwear, as they were not allowed inside. 

He wondered if Mrs. Sharon would be done with the decorations. The chances seemed low. If she’s not, I could score some brownie points by lending a hand.