“Human meat? What are you preaching about holy father? Why would their normal supply of food not be enough for them? They are not usual to leave the deep caverns from which they live. I have trapped them as my training dictated by the one who sat on this chair before me.”

  “Training? You’ve only been fighting against other humans, my exalted one. You have returned crowned with glory from fighting your own kind. There is nothing wrong with having your own beautiful cruelty for your own and knowing nothing about the darkness which ruled the ground you walk.”

  “Father, I am aware that governance is different from being a general and a soldier. Are you saying that I have been avoiding some of my duties in the pursuit of vain glories.”

  “I would never speak beyond my position. I am merely a servant of god who is here to serve you in pursuit of heaven.” The bishop’s mouth twitched as he spoke. “I think heaven would be brighter without – ogres.”

  “I see, you have the light behind you. It makes you look like the real voice of reason here doesn’t it, Father. I’ll come get your advice soon. Take care on your way back to the church. I will send some men to distribute rations to the refugees to avoid their clashing with the local folks.”

  =//=

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  Lot looked up at the men distributing the meal of the day as there were people around her in the clothing distributed by the Onem church. She had strapped Komi to her chest and she could feel his fear as he turned to hide his face as she raised up her wood bowl to get the gruel that was being offered to the populace. There were so many refugees that were pouring into Onem that she could see everywhere.

  There were ransack small villages on the edges of the town where she knew things were going to get a lot worse before they were going to get better. There were women who tied their legs together before they slept. Children often went missing and immediately afterwards there was a strange meat soup that was passed around.

  She had avoided all of that for now, but she knew, it was nowhere to raise her child.

  Lot had been silly to think that it would be easy to find work here. She knew some of her regulars were among the locals here, but there were so many vagrants who were going house to house begging for scraps and coin. If she went like this, she knew that she did not look like a proper woman who should be hired in any shop or tavern. Still, she did not have enough gold to even rent the barn in any of the inns in the town. Every single place was filled to capacity as if there was a voice speaking from above that she should be anywhere but here.

  It didn’t make her feel welcome as she looked at the spires of the black stone castle reaching out above her. She had imagined for so long that it was like a person holding out a hand for her, telling her that she should go there to ask for help. But the hand was there to pull her into the mire of poverty, deeper and deeper until she could not get out.