[BL] Alpha, You've Got the Wrong Mate!

Chapter 378 — A Monster’s Birth (2)

As a priest, he could not simply abandon the dead. It was against his morals, his duties, and his values.

Regardless of the circumstances, they deserved to be laid to rest according to the proper rites.

The father, the mother and the elderly midwife. All three had lost their lives under this roof.

Unfortunately, he did not have the luxury of holding a proper funeral. Time was not on his side. Every moment he spent here increased the risk of someone discovering the child.

The village would awaken soon enough. Neighbours would notice the smell of corpses. Someone would come looking. And if word spread about what had happened inside this hut...

The priest’s gaze drifted toward the infant.

The baby had fallen quiet, his tiny body wrapped in blankets, the scarf still covering his eyes.

A knot formed in the priest’s stomach.

The villagers would not care that he was only a newborn. They would not care that he had never harmed anyone intentionally. All they would see was something different.

Something frightening.

Something they could not understand.

They would call him cursed.

A devil.

An omen of disaster.

Just like they called the people of Revhara.

The priest lowered his head.

"No matter what you are," he murmured softly, "you deserve the chance to live."

The child responded with a small noise, his tiny fingers curling around the edge of the blanket.

The priest’s expression softened. Then he rose to his feet.

First, he would bury the dead. Afterward, he would take the child to the Temple.

Only the High Priests would know what should be done with a baby capable of taking lives from the moment he was born.

***

"Your Holiness!"

A servant of the Gods rushed toward a pair of large wooden doors.

Once she reached them, she paused, bending slightly to catch her breath. Her heart raced wildly in her chest after running through several corridors of the Temple. Taking a moment to compose herself, she straightened and knocked firmly on the door.

"What is it?!" an irritated voice called from within.

"A man has arrived with a child and says he wishes to meet you," she replied, remaining outside.

No one was permitted to enter that room. Not when all of the High Priests had gathered in one place.

"I am currently in a meeting with the other High Priests," the First High Priest stated impatiently.

"Uhm..." The servant hesitated before continuing. "I mean all of you, Your Holiness."

For a brief moment, silence followed.

"How rude!" one of the High Priests roared from inside the chamber.

"Let it be," another voice interrupted calmly. "Tell him to wait in the entrance hall. We will come shortly."

"Very well."

The woman bowed despite knowing they could not see her before turning on her heels and hurrying away.

The priest who had arrived at the Temple was still waiting near the entrance, drenched from head to toe. Rainwater dripped from his robes, forming small puddles beneath his feet. The infant in his arms remained wrapped carefully in blankets, protected from the worst of the storm.

It had begun raining unexpectedly throughout Hianshu.

The skies had darkened without warning, thunder rolling across the heavens as if the Gods themselves were displeased.

"But who even believes in Gods in this kingdom anymore?" the servant scoffed quietly to herself.

Ever since the war, the people of Hianshu had slowly begun losing faith in divine beings. Many believed they had been abandoned. Others believed they had been deceived from the very beginning.

The Temple remained the last pillar preventing countless citizens from openly denouncing the Gods.

Once she spotted the waiting priest, she quickly approached him.

"The High Priests have agreed to meet you. Please follow me."

The man nodded silently and followed her through the Temple.

Golden walls stood tall in every direction, illuminated by enormous lanterns hanging from the ceiling. The entire structure had been built according to the preferences of the Dragons long ago.

And despite the resentment many citizens now held toward immortals, nothing had changed.

Not yet.

After all, hatred alone could not erase centuries of history overnight.

If anything, the people’s resentment only seemed to deepen with each passing day. They felt betrayed by the very beings they had worshipped for generations.

So much so that groups had begun forming throughout the kingdom, gathering in secret, preparing themselves for conflicts that had not yet come.

The military of Hianshu never truly existed.

However, countless people were already preparing for the day they would be called to fight.

After what felt like an eternity, the large doors finally swung open.

A group of men and women entered the hall, their white robes flowing behind them. The colour was the symbol of the Temple itself, a tradition no priest dared to defy.

"What brings you here during such a storm?" one of the High Priests asked, raising an eyebrow as he crossed his arms over his chest. "I believe I sent you to inspect the villages only yesterday. How could you have returned so quickly?"

Before the priest could answer, another High Priest noticed the way he was holding something against his chest.

"What is that in your arms?"

"O-Oh, well..." the priest stammered. "It is a child I found in one of the villages. His parents are dead. When I arrived, the midwife warned me not to look him in the eyes. I couldn’t risk—"

Before he could finish speaking, High Priest XVII stepped forward and took the child from his arms.

"Why are you covering his eyes?" he demanded, raising an eyebrow.

Without hesitation, he untied the cloth wrapped around the infant’s face.

The baby’s eyes were revealed. Strange, certainly, but nothing happened.

For a moment, that was.

Then High Priest XVII froze. His hand flew to his chest.

"W-What is this?" he gasped.

His breathing became ragged. His eyes widened in terror. The next second, his body collapsed backward onto the floor.

A collective gasp swept through the hall.

"W-What just?..."